Dragon Ball X: Volume I: Eternal Protectors
by Animaster21
Summary: Volume I of the Dragon Ball X Pentology. After narrowly escaping the wrath of Frieza upon Planet Vegeta, a team of Saiyans descends on Planet Haven to hide. But Haven isn't without problems of its own, and Blitzo, Rhuna, and Makurin - along with team mechanic and leader Zeang - quickly find themselves involved in a battle spanning generations. Completed.
1. The Last Mission

**Dragon Ball X**

What's up guys? I'm back with a new story! This one is a Dragon Ball Z Fanfic.

Now, like all my other stories, this one takes place in the same universe as the original story, except doesn't feature any characters from the original story, except on rare occasions. This story will have Saiyans and Dragon Balls in it, but won't feature Goku or Vegeta, or any other vital characters, except people like King Kai and King Yemma, who you see if you die. It might have some cameos of characters like Goku, but only for a few seconds. Near the start several real characters will be mentioned, but probably not featured.

Anyway, about the time period. The first chapter of this is about a week before Frieza blows up Planet Vegeta.

The main plot doesn't take place on Earth, but rather on a planet just like it in every way. And I mean _every _way. The only things that are different are the people that live there. The planet has Dragon Balls, and its very own Hyperbolic Time Chamber (or the Room of Spirit and Time, as some of you might know it as). At the start of the story, for the first couple of chapters, the main characters are on Planet Vegeta.

If circumstances arise, I might have to change some facts from the original series, like how to fly, and stuff like that. Also, I'm going to steal Bulma's Dragon Radar from the future and include it in my story. And, of course, I'm going to invent my own energy attacks, and probably use some other ones that already exist (cough-cough-Kamehameha-cough-cough).

**00000000000000000000000000000**

Blitzo was woken from his sleep by a knock on the door. Annoyed, he said loudly, "Who is it?"

"It's me, open up! We have a new mission from Frieza." It was Blitzo's best friend, Rhuna. She was a tough Saiyan, always fighting to the end, and wore her Saiyan Battle Armour with pride.

Pressing a button on a pad next to the door, Blitz let her into his sleeping chambers. Rhuna walked in quickly, and Blitzo noticed that she was holding a large envelope.

"What's in there?" he asked, already knowing what the answer was.

"Mission Briefing. Zeang told me to show you." Zeang was the team's technology whiz, and he handled all the business side of things. While he was not a Saiyan, he was a well-respected member of Blitzo's team, and was easily the smartest.

"Does Makurin know?" asked Blitzo. Makurin was the last member of Blitzo's team, and was equal in power to Blitzo. The two were often arguing over who was the strongest.

"No, but he will soon. Anyway, you'd better read this, we leave in two hours," answered Rhuna, and left the room, leaving the briefing on a small table. Blitzo picked it up, and began to read. He sighed. Almost always, missions involved flying out to some random planet and destroying every being on it, so that Frieza could come along and sell it on the Planetary Trade Organisation. He hated doing it. He hated senseless slaughter and he hated working for Frieza, but had no choice. Frieza had made it clear many times before what happened if you didn't obey him. Death.

Blitzo began walking to his ship when he saw a familiar face walking by.

"Yo, Bardock! What's happening?"

The older Saiyan stopped by. He was donned in his green armour. Unusually, he was alone. Most of the time, his best mate, Tora, was with him.

"Hey, Blitzo," he said cheerfully. "How's training? Reached Super Saiyan yet?"

Blitzo laughed. "That's just a legend. Training's not bad though; my power level's getting pretty high. So what are you doing?"

Bardock's face fell. "Hiring out a ship. Bloody Frieza sent my team out to ransack a planet without me, because I was healing. That stupid alien on Kanassa did something to me."

"You should be fine, you're a Saiyan! I'm on a mission too. I better get going. See ya!"

"Yeah, bye," said Bardock, and walked off.

"Ah, there you are, Blitzo. What took you so long," said Zeang, when Blitzo arrived at the ship. His large head stood out in contrast to his rather small body, but the brain inside well made up for the odd looks. Zeang wasn't really much of a fighter, but could hold his own when needed.

"I had to get ready, what do you expect? Oh, by the way, my scouter keeps playing up, can you take a look at it?" asked Blitzo.

"Of course. Wait till we're on the ship though, we don't have time now," answered Zeang.

"Hey, can I tell you something? In confidence?"

"Sure. What is it?"

Blitzo took a deep breath. "I'm not really comfortable with all of this stuff. All this killing, just so a madman can make a fortune selling empty planets, it's not right."

Zeang looked around nervously. "Do _not_ let anyone hear you say that! Don't you remember what happened to Gohron?"

Blitzo thought for a second. "Yeah, that was a pretty big hole in his stomach. Frieza sure was mad at him, wasn't he?"

"You're right about that. That Death Beam tore right through him. Now get on the ship, we've gotta go."

As Blitzo stepped onto the ship, Makurin saw him. "Well, well, well, the tough guy's finally arrived. What took you so long, Blitzo?"

"I ran into Bardock. We had a little chat."

Makurin was interested. "How is Bardock, I haven't seen him for a while. What was the name of his new kid, Katoro or something?"

"Kakarot," corrected Rhuna, walking into the room. "Actually, I heard that he has a really low power level, three, I think."

"I heard it was two," said Blitzo.

"Who was that other kid, born on the same day? Broly, that's it! HE had a power level of ten thousand!" said Makurin.

"Ten thousand? He's a week old! Are you sure you heard right?" questioned Rhuna sceptically.

"Enough chit-chat! Let's get going!" said Zeang, climbing aboard.

"Rightio," replied Makurin grumpily. He hated the boredom of space travel. The planet they were taking over was a week away, and with little to do on the ship, it was going to be a long one.

**000**

Sweat poured down Blitzo's face and neck as he punched at the air, almost too fast to see. He had set the gravity to 2x that of Planet Vegeta, the machine's maximum, and it was beginning to take a toll on him. After another half-hour of training, he stopped, as it wasn't long before they arrived on Nera, the planet they had been assigned to take over. Leaning against the wall, he elbowed backwards in triumph, and accidently smashed straight through the wall.

"Not good," he said. "Oh well, we're nearly there anyway."

Taking off his sweat-stained shirt, he walked to the cockpit, where Zeang sat, poking at Blitzo's scouter with a screwdriver.

"There we go," he said, holding the scouter up to the light. "All done. It should work fine now. Try not to break it again."

"Thanks," said Blitzo, taking his scouter back and put it on. "It says that your power level is two thousand, five hundred. Is that about right?"

Zeang nodded. "Give or take. What's yours?"

"Check."

Zeang fitted on his own scouter. Seven thousand, two hundred and fifty. Nice."

Blitzo grinned. He began to speak when he heard shouting. Zeang heard it too, and gestured for Blitzo to check it out. Blitzo headed throughout the ship and found Rhuna and Makurin in the training room, yelling at each other.

"What the _hell _did you do to it?" shouted Rhuna. "Did you attack the wall or something?"

"It wasn't me! I haven't been in here since yesterday afternoon!" Makurin shouted back.

"What's going on?" asked Blitzo.

"I'll tell you what's going on! That moron smashed straight through the wall and broke the Gravity Isolation! Now the chamber won't work!" said Rhuna angrily.

Blitzo opened his mouth in surprise. He knew exactly what happened. "Whoops, that was me. My bad."

"See! It wasn't me that did it!" said Makurin, annoyed.

Rhuna went red in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, Makurin. I don't know what came over me."

"You've probably just been cooped up in this ship for too long," said Blitzo. "We all have."

"Anyway, what did _you _do it?" asked Rhuna angrily. "Now we can't train until Zeang fixes it!"

Makurin went to agree, when Zeang himself burst into the room, a look of horror on his face.

"Guys," he said faintly. "I'm afraid I've got some bad news. And that's the understatement of the century. Planet Vegeta was just destroyed, along with every Saiyan on the planet."

"WHAT?" exclaimed Blitzo, Rhuna and Makurin in unison. Suddenly, Blitz laughed.

"Haha. Good one Zeang. But you'll have to get up pretty early in the morning to catch me out."

Zeang shook his head furiously. "This isn't a joke, Blitzo. The Saiyans are extinct. All except for you three."

Makurin started laughing as well, but Rhuna stood as still as a statue, a look of shock on her face. Zeang knew that she understood the truth in his words. Blitzo and Makurin were still cracking up and making jokes.

"Next you'll say that Frieza blew the planet up with a giant Death Ball!" snorted Makurin. Zeang hung his head.

"That's exactly what happened," he answered sadly. Rhuna gasped loudly, and Blitzo looked at her, still snickering.

"Don't tell me you actually believe him. This is all a big joke, isn't it Zeang?"

"Enough! This is not a joke!" yelled Zeang. "This is serious!"

Makurin couldn't help but grin. "Frieza wouldn't destroy our race. We're worth too much to him."

"What if we're too powerful?" said Rhuna angrily. "What if he feared us, so we were wiped out so we couldn't defeat him one day?"

Blitzo stopped laughing, and began to look a little worried.

"How do you know of this?" he asked Zeang.

"I got a message from Procktu. He saw the whole thing from Frieza's ship," replied Zeang. Procktu was one of Frieza's henchmen, but he was friendly towards the Saiyans, and considered Blitzo's team good friends. "Bardock tried to kill Frieza, so the bastard blew up the entire planet. Procktu told me to get you guys out, or you'd be next. We have to flee now; Frieza will send soldiers after us."

"Where should we go?" asked Makurin, sadness etched all over his face.

"Bardock, you fool! Did you really think that you could beat Frieza all on your own? His power level is over five hundred thousand!" muttered Blitzo. He was full of sorrow for his race, and for his friend Bardock. Then he realised. "Hang on; if we don't work for Frieza anymore, then we definitely don't need to kill everyone on the planet now."

Suddenly the ship started shaking as they entered the atmosphere of Nera. Zeang ran to the controls and managed to take partial control of the ship before they smashed to the ground. A massive crash echoed out as the ship created a huge crater. Many people around the area screamed in terror.

"Ah, guys!" called Zeang nervously. "The ship was damaged in the landing! We need new parts to repair it!"

"_And _the Gravity Machine is broken," said Rhuna.

"What happened?" Zeang inquired.

"Ask Blitzo," Rhuna answered.

"Forget that. Come on, let's check out the surface. We'll see if we can get parts from the locals," said Makurin.

Fortunately, the door still worked, and they exited the ship, onto the planet. The sky was purple, and a stream nearby had some strange orange-coloured liquid in it. As they looked around, a humanoid alien walked up to them. It had blue skin, with red spots on top of its head.

"Who are you?" he demanded. Blitzo held up his hands to show that he wasn't armed.

"We come in peace. Don't worry, we won't hurt you, unless you try to hurt us. We need parts for our ship, can you help us?"

The alien nodded. "Our technology is quite advanced, I'm sure that we have what you need somewhere, but it won't be cheap. We don't readily give away our valuable resources. My name is Charon, by the way."

"Mine's Blitzo, and this is Makurin, and she's Rhuna. We have another guy on the ship, Zeang."

"We have a problem," said Rhuna. "We don't have much money with us, so it's probably not enough."

"I'm sure that we can work something ou-." Charon was cut off suddenly by a loud scream. The four of them turned to see a woman running towards them.

"HELP!" she screamed. "An alien is attacking us!"

Behind her was a red monster with six arms. It was three metres high, and had green rolling eyes. Its mouth-hole was twisted into a snarl. Charon turned to the Saiyans, his face a frightened mess.

"Please help us. Our race cannot fight, we will all be destroyed! Save us, and we will give you the parts you need, and more!"

Blitzo quickly put his scouter on. The monster had a power level of ten thousand, and was in a terrible rage.

"Come on, let's kill it quickly before it can destroy anyone!"

"Let's go!" said Makurin, taking off into the air. In a few short seconds, he reached the monster and unleashed a barrage of punches to its face. The monster roared, and swung a giant arm at Makurin. He was knocked down to the ground, making a hole a foot deep. Dashing forwards to help his friend, Blitzo blasted the monster with several ki blasts.

Meanwhile, Makurin was climbing to his feet, and released a devastating uppercut, catching the monster between its legs. The monster retaliated by firing a powerful energy beam at him. Travelling too fast for the eyes to see, Makurin flew out of the way, and the beam exploded into the ground. Blitzo took the chance to fight back, and punched the monster in the face. It yelped, before grabbing him out of the air. In a split second, it turned and grabbed Makurin as well.

Over by the ship, Rhuna rolled her eyes, and launched into battle. Covering the distance between her and the monster in one second, she delivered an explosive kick to the back of the monster's head, sending it flying into a building twenty metres away. Blitzo and Makurin, who had wriggled out of its grasp before the impact, hovered down to stand next to Rhuna.

"Nice kick. You saved our bacon then," said Makurin gratefully. Rhuna shook her head.

"You guys never think, do you? You just charge into battle without a strategy."

Charon ran up to them. "Did you kill it?" he asked.

"Not quite. It's still in there," said Blitzo, pointing at the rubble. There was a bright flash, and Makurin's head snapped back from the impact of the monster's fist hitting his face. Rhuna gasped as a fist hit her in the stomach, and she doubled over in pain. Blitzo dodged the foot that aimed at him, and placed his fist under the monsters chin.

"Burning Dart Beam!" he yelled, and a giant yellow energy ray blasted out of his hand, disintegrating the monsters head. It crashed to the ground, dead, and Blitzo grinned.

"Piece of cake."

Charon was amazed. "You three are incredible! Without your timely arrival, we would have all been killed in about five minutes."

"No problem," laughed Blitzo, as Makurin and Rhuna got to their feet. Rhuna was clutching her stomach, while Makurin was holding onto his face.

"Good job, Blitzo, you did it!"

"We'll get you the parts you need right away!" said Charon gratefully.

**000**

I hope you all like it! I've been planning this for a while, but didn't get the chance to right it until now. I'm sorry that I didn't get an Aura Adventure chapter up this weekend, but I'm going to write a bit each night for this week, and put the chapter up on Thursday, and then go back to my usual routine on Friday night.

Well, see you on Thursday (If I don't get too much homework)!


	2. Welcome To Planet Haven

**Dragon Ball X**

Yo, guys. Ok, first of all, I am extremely sorry about the lack of updates. I now owe you guys 5 chapters, including this one. Since it's been a while since I updated this, and since I've been watching a lot of Dragon Ball Z lately, I decided to do a chapter on this. Taa-daa, here it is.

By the way, the planet that the story takes place on from here on is called Planet Haven. In any instances where the word Earth might be used, Haven will be used instead. For example, instead of saying: "The Saiyan touched down to Earth", it'll be "The Saiyan touched down to Haven". The only time Earth will be used is when it is referring to dirt. For example, the sentence "The Saiyan dug up a clump of earth", will remain the same. The dominant race on the planet are the Haviens but, like Saiyans, they look just like humans.

**000**

Blitzo awoke with a start. He was sweating, perspiration pouring down his back. The dream wasn't a good one. It had Frieza in it. Any dream with Frieza is guaranteed to be bad. The young Saiyan warrior got out of his sleeping chamber and walked to the cockpit of the ship. Zeang was inside.

Zeang's race didn't need to sleep. This combined with their superior intellect, made them very effective mechanics and pilots. They could keep going throughout the night, for days on end. As Blitzo stepped into the room, Zeang raised his large head from the controls.

"Hey, Blitzo, what's up? You should be asleep."

"I had a nightmare," said Blitzo. "Couldn't sleep."

Zeang nodded. "I understand."

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Blitzo was watching Zeang fiddle with the controls of the ship. Suddenly the alien sat up straight.

"What is it?" asked Blitzo.

"Planet Haven," answered Zeang. "We've arrived. Welcome to our new home!"

"No way!" said Blitzo excitedly. "We've been travelling for weeks." He could see the planet in the distance of space. They were still thousands of kilometres away, but would arrive within five minutes due to the speed of the ship. "I'll get the others!"

"No, no, let them sleep. We've got the rest of our lives to explore. That is, if Frieza doesn't track us down and kill us."

"He won't. We've gone too far to be tracked," said Blitzo.

A few minutes later, the ship landed on the surface. Blitzo went to the ship's exit and hit the door release button. He climbed out the hole, Zeang following close behind. Together, they surveyed the landscape.

"It's...beautiful," breathed Blitzo.

And it was. Everywhere there was green and blue. The entire ground was covered by grass. Nearby, there was a clear stream with pure water. You could see straight through to the bottom, where there were round rocks. There were a few large boulders around, some as big as the ship itself.

"Amazing!" said Zeang.

At the same time, they began to walk. Neither said a word, they just kept going, open-mouthed. A few kilometres away from the ship, Zeang spoke again.

"I had no idea a place so wonderful could even exist."

"Yeah," answered Blitzo. He spied a splash of orange-yellow twenty metres away. Strolling over to it, he found the source: a small sphere on the ground. Bending down and picking it up, he noticed that it had three dark orange stars on it. It was the size of an apple.

"What's this?" he asked himself, straightening up.

His scouter beeped. Blitzo turned just in time to duck under the sword whistling over his head. The man holding it tripped over his crouched body and went flying head over heels. To Blitzo's surprise, the stranger managed a one-handed cartwheel and was back on his feet before he even hit the ground.

Blitzo quickly placed the ball in a pocket in his Saiyan armour. Then, he inspected the man facing him. His hair was brown, going down to his shoulders. He wore a blue gi, with a black strip of cloth acting as a belt, holding the clothing in place. Under the gi was a red shirt. He wore black boots and in his hand was the sword that Blitzo had ducked under. The blade was red, with a silver handgrip. Strapped across the man's back was a sheath.

Blitzo checked his scouter. _Hmm, _he thought. _Power Level: 1500. Pretty weak, I can handle him easily._

Zeang was standing by. He had also assessed the man with his scouter and was aware that there was no real threat. Suddenly, his scouter alerted him of another power level, this one heading straight for him. He turned to see another man, younger than the first, running at him, another sword held high. He was dressed the same as the first man, only his sword was blue. The scouter read his Power Level to be 1200.

The sword swung in a downwards arc, ready to cleave Zeang's head wide open. Zeang's eyes twitched, and the sword stopped dead in mid-air. The younger man gasped, and struggled to move his sword, but it was held fast by Zeang's telekinesis. While Zeang's Power Level was low compared to the Saiyans, it was still more than double this human's. Zeang smiled.

Meanwhile, Blitzo was dodging continuous punches and kicks from the first human. No matter how fast the man moved, Blitzo was quicker. Finally, the man got impatient and unsheathed his sword, swinging it at Blitzo. The Saiyan still dodged and weaved easily around the blade. After ducking under a particularly vicious horizontal swipe, Blitzo held himself up with one hand, and swung his legs around, tripping the man over. With his free hand, he grabbed the fallen's leg. Jumping back up, he spun once to gain momentum, and then hurled the man by his leg high into the air. As quick as a flash, he flew up behind the flying body and elbowed him in the face. The impact was so powerful that the stranger was propelled straight down, falling the fifty metres to the ground. He hit hard, getting knocked out.

By now, Zeang had totally paralysed the younger man, without even moving. After gathering up all of his energy, he blasted it all out in the form of a gust of wind, blowing the man back. He cracked his head on a rock, also falling unconscious.

Blitzo hovered over to Zeang. "Do you think we overdid it a little?" he asked.

Zeang shrugged. "Dunno. They're not dead, at least. We need information, and connections. Let's take 'em back to the ship."

Blitzo nodded, and marched over to his opponent. With Blitzo's superhuman strength, the man was almost weightless. Blitzo easily slung him over a shoulder, and began to walk back to the ship. Zeang walked alongside, levitating the second man behind them.

**000**

"Why do you think they attacked you?" asked Rhuna.

When they had arrived back at the ship, Blitzo and Zeang sat the unconscious men in the seats around the table. Then Blitzo awoke Rhuna and Makurin while Zeang checked the main computer for any high power levels within the area. After discerning that they were in a remote area, he joined the Saiyans as they stared at the two warriors.

"We don't know," answered Zeang. "But judging by the average Power Level of the inhabitants of this planet, these two are fairly competent fighters."

"I wonder if it had anything to do with this?" commented Blitzo as he held up the ball he had found. It glimmered under the light.

"What is it?" Makurin asked. He was annoyed that he hadn't been awoken to explore the surface. Makurin loved a good fight.

"How would I know?" answered Blitzo. "I think it's valuable, though.

"He's stirring," said Zeang, as he inspected the older man. They all fell silent, watching him wake. Slowly he opened his eyes, groaning softly. As his eyes cleared, he surveyed them all. Blitzo admired him, for he showed no sign of fear or alarm, despite having been captured by strangers who had effortlessly defeated him.

"Peace, my friend. We mean you no harm. Who are you?" asked Zeang.

The man looked at him, and then answered. His voice was strong and clear. "I was about to ask you the same question. My name is Ferris. Who are you? And what planet are you all from?"

"How did you know we weren't from this planet?" asked Makurin.

"Isn't it obvious?" smiled Ferris. "And you still haven't told me who you are."

"My name is Zeang. This is Makurin, and Rhuna. And you've met Blitzo, of course."

Ferris turned his eyes to Blitzo. "Oh, yes. You are indeed a powerful fighter. You outmatched me at every turn."

Blitzo smiled. "It's in my blood. It's in all of our blood. We come from a planet named Vegeta. Our race is the Saiyans, the most powerful fighters in the universe. Apart from Frieza."

"Who's that?"

"Our former leader, a galactic tyrant. He blew up our planet and doomed our race to extinction.

Ferris looked sad. "I am sorry," he said. "Where is my sword?"

Rhuna picked it up from where it was leaning against the wall. She passed it to him. "You have a stunning blade," she said.

"Thank-you," replied Ferris, strapping it back onto his back. "Its name is Shinsou. That means-"

"Truth," cut in Rhuna. "I know."

"And what about you?" asked Ferris, turning back to Zeang. "You are obviously not a Saiyan."

Zeang shook his head. "No, I am not a Saiyan. My species is known as the Gakusha. We are not as powerful as the Saiyans."

Ferris nodded. "I know. I can sense each of your energy levels."

They all gasped. "_What?" _exclaimed Rhuna.

"No way! How do you do that without a scouter?" asked Makurin.

Ferris smiled wisely. "It's not really that hard with a bit of training."

"Maybe you could teach us," suggested Blitzo.

Ferris laughed. "Perhaps, but I'm still not entirely sure I can trust you."

He looked around at the younger man still out of it next to him. "Ah, Kenta. I told you to stay back. Where is his sword?"

Rhuna passed it to him. "What's this one's name?" she asked.

"Nenriki. It means Faith."

At this moment, Kenta stirred as well, and slowly awoke.

"Urgh, where am I?" he grunted, sitting up. He had shorter hair than Ferris, and it was a lighter shade of brown. A fringe only just veiled his eyebrows and the back of his neck was covered. Looking at him closely, Blitzo noticed that he was younger than he first appeared. He looked only 16, whereas as Ferris was about 25.

Ferris quickly explained to Kenta about the Saiyans. When he was finished, Blitzo took out the orange ball and placed it on the table in front of the two humans.

"Can either of you tell me what this is?" he asked.

Ferris and Kenta both breathed in quickly. "So you have it? That's a relief."

"But what is it?" asked Makurin.

"It's called a Dragon Ball," said Ferris. "There are only seven of them in the whole world. This one is called the Three-Star Ball. It is said that when all seven are gathered together..."

He broke off, and looked up at the roof. His face was white.

"N-no! H-how can that be?" he stammered.

A few seconds later, Kenta gasped, and also looked at the roof.

"No way!" he exclaimed.

"What, what is it?" asked Rhuna.

"A massive energy level, heading this way," said Ferris, still as pale as a ghost.

"Which direction is it coming from?" asked Makurin.

"A-above us..." whispered Kenta. "From space."

It took a few seconds for the significance of this statement to sink in. Blitzo realised first.

"Frieza's men!"

"It can't be!" cried Zeang.

He rushed to the main computer and began typing. A few seconds later the data popped up on the screen.

"It's true! Two Saiyan ships, heading here fast."

"I thought there were no Saiyans left?" pondered Kenta.

"There isn't," said Zeang. "But our technology is advanced. Frieza is using our technology for his own purposes."

"How strong are the fighters inside?" asked Makurin. He was ready to fight, to his death if he had to.

"One has a Power Level of 10,000, the other is 15,000," answered Zeang worriedly.

"NO! We can't beat someone that strong," cried Rhuna.

"We have to try. They'll kill everyone if we don't," said Blitzo.

"The ships have landed. They're heading this way."

Ferris gasped. "The levels are rising. They're charging up an energy beam each!"

"SHIELDS!" bellowed Makurin.

All three Saiyans raised their hands.

"ZEN-TOKU!" they all yelled.

Outside, a green field materialised around the ship. The beam impacted on the shield, but it held. Due to the combined efforts of Blitzo, Makurin and Rhuna, the attack was repelled.

"Come on! Get out of here before they attack again!" yelled Zeang, and they all rushed for the exit, seconds before a yellow beam hit the ship, which exploded. Chunks of metal flew everywhere. The Saiyans, Zeang, Ferris and Kenta, only just managed to escape. Zeang caught sight of the attackers, hovering about 500 metres away.

"It's Porter and Cuo!" he gasped.

Porter was humanoid, with Saiyan armour on and blue skin. His head was bald, with three eyes and no nose. He had the Power Level of 10,000.

Cuo, on the other hand, was a lot stronger, with the Power Level of 15,000. Like his brother, Cui, he had purple skin, with an antenna on each cheek. He had two bulges for ears and a fish face.

They flew over to the small group and landed a short distance away.

"Hello hello," said Cuo. He had a raspy sort of voice. "And how are we all today? I must say, you put up that shield just in time."

Porter looked at Ferris and Kenta. "Who are you fools?"

"The name's Ferris. "What's it to you?"

"My, my. You've made friends already. Very impressive," sneered Cuo. "You always had good social skills, Blitzo."

"Damn you, Cuo. I'll kill you, I swear."

Cuo frowned. "That's not very nice."

"How did you find us?" asked Zeang.

"We were told by the inhabitants of Nera."

_Charon betrayed us! He promised not to tell anyone where we were headed!_ Thought Blitzo angrily.

Porter noticed his angry expression. "Oh, they didn't tell us willingly. But we got what we wanted in the end, from that leader guy. It's amazing what you can get out of a man when you torture his family and friends."

"You _what?"_ gasped Rhuna. "How could you?"

"Quite easily. Although, we couldn't have him plotting afterwards, so we disposed of him." Porter looked down and patted his stomach. "Yeah...he was pretty tasty."

Suddenly, Porter felt a great impact on his chin as Makurin's foot impacted with it. The alien flew back a few metres. Faster than you could blink, Cuo grabbed Makurin's ankle with a scaly hand. Then he threw the Saiyan back to the group. Laughing evilly, he said "I've been looking forward to this."

Porter was back on his feet, nursing his chin, and glared at Makurin.

"Prepare to die!"

**000**

Fun fact: This is the first time that I've written more than one chapter for a fic other than Aura Adventure. Weird, isn't it?

By the way, if you're wondering, Blitzo, Makurin and Rhuna are all 17 years old. Zeang is older, 24.

Now that I've done this chapter, this story is well and truly underway. So, I should update it more often. Next time, The Saiyans fight against Frieza's goons, Porter and Cuo. Are they even strong enough to fight on par with the two intruders? Find out, in the next Dragon Ball X!

See ya!


	3. When Aliens Attack

**Dragon Ball X**

Yo guys, what's up? I'm sorry to say that I've totally lost track of how many chapters I owe, so I'm going to say that I owe you 7. This counts as one, so 6 after this.

Now, with the help of Littlmiget123, I've corrected some mistakes in the story so far, and I also changed the gravity that Blitzo was training in to 2x Planet Vegeta's gravity, about 20x Earth's. Please forgive any mistakes in this chapter, I'm writing this at 1:00 in the morning.

Anyway, last time on Dragon Ball X, Blitzo and the others landed on Planet Haven, and encountered two men, Ferris and Kenta. Shortly after, their ship was attacked by two of Frieza's henchmen. Now, on with the story!

**000**

Porter and Makurin stood stock still, glaring at each other. Both had pure rage and hate in their eyes. Cuo stood back, his arms folded. He looked amused. In the sky, dark clouds were hanging overhead. A crack of thunder rumbled over the land.

"Next time you'll think twice about kicking me," said Porter menacingly. He raised a foot, and took a single step towards the younger Saiyan. Cuo's head turned slightly, and he flung an arm into Porter's path.

"Wait."

"What is it, Cuo? I don't want to have to wait too long before I can crush these maggots' heads under my boot," growled Porter. His third eye was twitching.

Cuo smiled. "That's what I was afraid of. You see, these are the last Saiyans in existence, with the exception of young Prince Vegeta of course. We don't want to kill them _too _quickly. Make it slow. Make it painful."

"Prince Vegeta is still alive?" asked Rhuna. Cuo nodded once.

"For now. If it was up to me, his head would be nailed to the wall right now. You Saiyans are nothing but filthy monkeys. But Frieza says that he wants Vegeta as a "consolation prize".

"So, there are still some more of us. That's a relief," said Makurin.

"Yes, it is," replied Zeang.

"Shut up, all of you!" cut in Porter. "Soon Vegeta will be the _only _Saiyan left."

Blitzo stepped forwards. "Not as long as we still have breath in our bodies," he said defiantly. Cuo narrowed his eyes.

"We shall see. Porter, you go first."

Blitzo clenched his fists, but Makurin stepped in front. "No, Blitzo. I'm fighting him."

Blitzo backed off, moving to stand next to Rhuna while Makurin prepared. Rhuna glanced at him and noticed Ferris and Kenta standing behind them. She had forgotten all about them.

"You guys need to get out of here now," she said forcefully.

Ferris didn't move. "No."

"I mean it. You'll only get in our way."

He still wouldn't budge. "I'm not leaving you all to die. If you are defeated, they'll destroy the planet."

Rhuna laughed coldly. "And you think that being here will stop us from losing? You two were beaten up by Blitzo and Zeang without them even breaking a sweat. Porter and Ferris are even stronger. You wouldn't stand a chance. Now get out of here."

Ferris shook his head. "I said, I'm not going."

"Neither am I," piped up Kenta.

Rhuna looked at the younger Havien. He had courage, she could see that, but his Power Level was a measly 1200. Compared to Cuo, or even Porter, he was an insect.

"Leave," she ordered.

"We won't," enforced Ferris. "If you die, then Haven will be destroyed. We'll help you as much as we can."

"No, you won't!" shouted Rhuna. "We don't want to have to worry about protecting you, it'll only distract us. Now get out of here, or _I'll _kill you!"

Ferris went pale. "You wouldn't," he whispered. "You're just saying that."

"Try me," yelled Rhuna.

Ferris looked directly at her. He looked sad. "Then you are just as ruthless as they," he said quietly.

"Maybe so," answered Rhuna. "But only when I have to be."

In that moment, her message finally got across. Ferris looked at Kenta.

"Alright. Let's go." He took to the air, flying into the distance. Kenta grudgingly followed, looking back as he flew. Rhuna turned back to the fight.

Porter and Makurin were once again staring each other down.

"You know, Makurin, this is gonna be the most fun I've had in months. It's not often that you get to kill a hated enemy."

"I know exactly what you mean, Porter. We'll see how fun it is when I'm standing over your dead corpse."

"You shouldn't be so arrogant, worm. I'm a lot stronger than you."

"How do you figure that?" asked Makurin. Porter laughed.

"My Power Level is a solid 10,000. Yours is only a mere 7450. I clearly have the upper hand."

Makurin grinned slyly. "So quickly you forget. I'm a Saiyan, the ultimate fighting race. No one can match us. We have things you don't."

"And what is that? A bad smell? That stupid tail? Hardly something to brag about." smirked Porter.

"No. We have Pride. We have Honour. _And we have Spirit!"_

He dashed forwards. Porter was caught off guard, and recoiled as the Saiyan's fist hit his jaw. Makurin followed up with a slug in the stomach. Porter snarled, and fought back. Makurin fell back under a hail of repeated blows. Some of them he blocked, but others broke through his guard.

Blitzo stepped forwards to help, but stopped when Cuo spoke.

"Take one more step, I dare you. If anyone tries to interfere, then so will I. And that spells certain death for all of you."

"He's right," grunted Makurin. Porter had backed off, and Makurin was gingerly rubbing a bruise on his cheek. "This is my fight."

"But you can't win!" protested Zeang. Makurin looked at him stonily.

"Gee, thanks for the encouragement, Zeang, it's a big help."

"But it's true, and you know it as well as the rest of us, Makurin."

Blitzo was more believing. "Don't give in. You can win. You're a Saiyan."

Porter was growing impatient. "Enough." In a second, he was right in front of Makurin, and delivered a shattering elbow in his face.

"Makurin, look out!" screamed Rhuna.

Makurin was clenching his nose, blood flowing freely between his fingers. Panic was in his eyes. Seconds later, spit flew out of his mouth as Porter kicked him hard in the stomach. The young warrior fell to his knees. He was already exhausted, and Porter was only mildly sweating. Another crack of thunder was heard, and the rain began to fall.

"You wretch!" yelled Rhuna. She ran forwards and released a hail of punches, kicks, knees and elbows at Porter, who was overwhelmed. Rhuna was moving incredibly fast, her anger and fear granting her increased strength. Cuo's eyes glinted.

"Interference!" he yelled, and raised a hand, palm facing towards Rhuna. It glowed, and then a deadly beam of energy speared out, heading straight at the young Saiyan girl. It was travelling too fast to dodge, and was too powerful to block. Her eyes widened. Thunder cracked.

"No!" yelled Makurin, still on his knees. Finding new strength, and ignoring the pain, he leaped up and dived in front. The ki blast hit him full-on, and he collapsed, Saiyan armour smoking. He didn't move. Blitzo was furious. Makurin was his best friend, tied with Rhuna. Blitzo had known him his entire life.

"You _bastard!" _he roared, and flung himself at Cuo. The purple alien grinned, and caught Blitzo's fist as it flew towards him. Blitzo swung his other fist, but that one was caught too. The Saiyan stood, both hands held fast by Cuo, and didn't know what to do. Frieza's men were too strong, they couldn't win. Makurin was down, and it looked like he would soon be following, Rhuna and Zeang soon after. The rain intensified.

Meanwhile, Rhuna was facing Porter. He laughed cruelly.

"Makurin's dead, Makurin's dead," he jeered, as he blocked her punches. Tears were flowing down her cheeks. Porter lashed out several times, and each hit found its mark. Rhuna was in tremendous pain, but kept fighting anyway. After all, she was a Saiyan. And Saiyans don't give up. Aiming a punch, she slugged Porter in the chest, crushing his armour and sending him staggering backwards. His face screwed up in anger, and his arm shot out as fast as lightning, grabbing her by the throat. His fingernails were as sharp as daggers.

Slowly, he began to squeeze, and Rhuna felt life start to slip away. Her strength had faded, deserting her when she most needed it. She accepted her loss. Wasn't it a Saiyan's wish to die in battle? Rhuna's eyes closed.

Suddenly, Porter screamed in pain, and he dropped her to the ground. Rhuna clawed at her throat. It was bleeding from Porter's nails. When she recovered, she looked up.

Porter was in agony, clutching at his head, screaming and wailing. Rhuna looked around for the source of the attack, and saw Zeang. He was focusing entirely on Porter, and Rhuna realised that he was using his telekinesis to attack Porter's mind.

While this was going on, Blitzo was still trapped by Cuo. The fish-faced monster was laughing evilly.

"Nowhere to go, nowhere to run. You're going to die. You can't possibly hope to defeat me."

"Maybe not. But one day, you'll get your comeuppance, Cuo. All of your deeds will be laid bare, for all to see. And you will be sent to Hell."

"I guess I'll see you there. Maybe you can give me the tour when I arrive. Now die!"

He released one of Blitzo's hands, and delivered an almighty punch that hurled Blitzo back several yards. Then, he raised an arm, shooting an energy beam at the Saiyan. Blitzo dodged, flying into the air. Cuo grunted in anger, and followed him up into the sky. Bolts of lightning flashed around them. The two warriors circled each other in the air.

"Your time is up, Saiyan! This day will spell your end!"

"And with great hope do I say the same for you!" replied Blitzo. His anger was overwhelming, his Power Level rising higher than ever before.

Cuo flew forwards. Blitzo dodged, and kicked backwards. Cuo blocked the attack, and then tried to headbutt Blitzo, hitting him in the chin. The two exchanged blows, neither gaining the advantage.

Down below, on the ground, Porter was still struggling to throw off the racking pain in his head. Zeang was concentrating so hard that he couldn't even blink. If the slightest thing distracted him, Porter would be able to counter.

"Stop this now, or else!" Porter yelled. But Zeang wasn't giving up. Suddenly Porter folded his arms across his chest, and then thrust them out to the sides, releasing a massive wave of ki, knocking Zeang and Rhuna over. Zeang lost concentration, and Porter broke free. Turning angrily towards Zeang, he raised a hand, forming a large ki sphere. Holding his wrist for support, he launched the ball at Zeang, who couldn't dodge fast enough.

Just then, another ki sphere shot out of nowhere and knocked Porter's out of the way, saving Zeang. Porter roared in anger, and turned to see Makurin on one knee, holding his hand out.

"_What?_ But you died!" screamed Porter in disbelief. Makurin grinned.

"It takes more than that to keep a Saiyan down. I told you before, didn't I? We have Spirit. Battle Spirit. The courage to keep on fighting, even when it seems we have lost." His eyes narrowed. "Now let's do this!"

Zeang thrust out his arms, holding Porter in place. Makurin hovered in the air, and then shot himself straight at Porter, feet first. On the side, Rhuna did the same. Porter couldn't move, held fast by Zeang. He managed to turn his head far enough to see Zeang, who smiled wearily.

"What fun, eh?"

"Damn you to Hell, you piece of slime!" shouted Porter. "Let me go!"

"No. Your time has come. See ya!"

Porter gave one last roar as Makurin and Rhuna's feet collided with his head at the same time. The opposite forces converged on his head, and then it exploded. Porter's headless body fell to the ground, disgusting liquids dribbling out of his neck.

Rhuna and Makurin both gasped for air, exhausted beyond belief. Every bit of their energy was gone. Then Makurin realised.

"Where are Blitzo and Cuo?"

"Look up there!" gasped Zeang pointing into the sky. High above their heads, Blitzo and Cuo were duking it out in the sky. Their arms and legs were moving so fast that they were blurs.

"How is Blitzo doing it? All three of us combined only just managed to beat Porter," asked Makurin.

"How did he get that much extra strength?" wondered Rhuna.

Zeang shook his head sadly. "I don't know. I guess that his rage is fuelling him. But it won't matter. His Power Level can't increase to the needed level. Cuo's toying with him.

"We have to help him then!" protested Makurin, but Zeang refused.

"We can't, we'll only get in his way. Besides, you look like you're about to drop dead. What use would you be?"

Makurin grimaced.

Up above, Blitzo was in trouble. He could feel new energy pumping through him, but he knew it wasn't enough. He could see the smile on Cuo's face as he dodged Blitzo's punches, and his attacks were deliberately light so that he didn't hurt Blitzo too much. This was a game to Cuo. Blitzo knew that. But it was like facing a rhino with a toothpick. How could he possibly win?

**000**

OK, I'll admit that this chapter wasn't very interesting; I'll have to find a way to spice up the fight scenes.

So, now it's 6 chapters I owe you guys. 7 again this Friday. I'll have to start writing a lot to catch up. I hope to have at least 5 chapters done by the end of the holidays. Sorry that this chapter took so long, by the way. I had to start again because the first attempt at this chapter was a pile of dog crap. So I changed it a lot and got this.

Next time, Blitzo is in hot water when Cuo steps up the intensity. But can the timely arrival of a friend save him? Find out in the next episode of Dragon Ball X!


	4. The Power of the KenseiGan

**Dragon Ball X**

I'm back. First, a little business. On my profile page, I have a poll about which stories I should work on. Be sure to check it out. It will last a month.

Anyway, last time on Dragon Ball X, due to the combined efforts of Rhuna, Makurin and Zeang, Porter was defeated by a pincer kick to the head. Meanwhile, Blitzo was battling it out with Cuo in the sky. The others are too injured to help. Can Blitzo do it?

**000**

Blitzo ducked under a punch. Frantically, he tried to dodge a few more, but was hit twice. After a punch of his own was blocked, he took another few to the face.

"_It's no use!"_ he thought. "_He's too powerful, and he's not even trying! How can I win this? Can I win this?"_

Cuo laughed. "Given in yet, Blitzo? I think you should."

"Never!" shouted Blitzo. "I'll never give in. A Saiyan never quits!"

Swinging his arm forwards, he managed to break through Cuo's guard, striking the invader's chin. Cuo's eyes flashed in anger, and he delivered a full force punch to Blitzo's cheek, sending him flying through the air. The power behind the blow was immense.

"Blitzo!" he heard Rhuna yell.

"Be careful!" added Makurin.

Blitzo halted his trajectory through the air and looked down at his companions. They looked exhausted, but didn't seem to be fighting. With a thrill, he saw Porter's headless body on the ground a few metres away.

"_They did it! They beat Porter!"_ Blitzo looked back up to Cuo, confidence rising. "_And if they can beat their enemy, so can I!"_

"Did you see, Cuo? Porter's dead! Now it's just you and me, and you're going down."

Cuo looked irritated. "That's a rather annoying turn of events," he said. "It's gonna be a boring trip home."

"You won't be going home, Cuo. This ends now!"

Blitzo rushed through the air at Cuo, his confidence granting him strength, boosting his Power Level again. The Saiyan unloaded a mass of extremely fast punches, easily bypassing Cuo's defence, who grunted in pain as his face was pounded time and time again. Suddenly, Blitzo stopped the punches and donkey-kicked Cuo in the stomach. Cuo doubled over, gasping. Then he looked up and grinned.

"I'm a good actor, aren't I?"

"_What?" _gasped Blitzo.

"You really thought I would fall so easily? You have no idea of my true power. What do you say to stepping up the intensity?"

Blitzo was horrified as his newfound confidence vanished. Cuo shot out his fist and belted Blitzo so hard that blood sprayed out of his mouth. Cuo followed up with a foot in the face. Blitzo blacked out, and tumbled to the ground.

"He's falling!" said Zeang. Using his powers, he slowed down Blitzo's body so that he wasn't hurt when he landed. Then he levitated the body over to them. "Come on. Let's grab him and go."

"No," said Rhuna and Makurin in unison. They all looked at each other. Rhuna spoke again.

"We can't run; he'd catch up to us too easily. We won't win this. Let's face it." She bowed he head, and Makurin nodded sadly.

"N-no," croaked a weak voice. It was Blitzo. Opening his eyes, he looked at them. "We can do this. All we need to do is believe."

"In what?" asked Makurin doubtfully. "What should believe in?"

Blitzo smiled. Blood was trickling out of the corner of his mouth. "Our power. Our race. Ourselves."

Painfully, he climbed to his feet. "We _can_ do this. We _can _win. To honour the Saiyans!"

Suddenly, a cold, sarcastic voice interrupted him.

"Oh, isn't that such a stirring speech?" laughed Cuo. "Faith won't get you anywhere. The only thing that matters is superior power!"

Blitzo laughed. "I beg to differ."

Suddenly, he yelled out, and his energy levels soared straight back up their maximum. Cuo was visibly shocked, and he wasn't the only one. Makurin, Zeang and Rhuna all fell back away from Blitzo.

"How did he do that?" shouted Makurin, over Blitzo yelling.

"I-I don't know..." replied Zeang. "It's just not normal."

Blitzo finished powering up, and his fist glowed.

"_Burning Dart Beam!" _he roared, and a massive burst of energy erupted from his fist at Cuo, who gasped in fear of the mighty blast. Quickly, he brought his arms up in an X shape in front of him. The blast collided full blast in the centre of the X, and there was a massive explosion. Smoke went everywhere.

"Did he do it?" asked Zeang.

"Dunno," replied Rhuna.

Slowly the smoke cleared to reveal Cuo, still standing. His arms, severely scorched, were still in the X shape, and he was panting heavily.

"I must say, Blitzo; that was indeed a strong attack. But not enough I'm afraid."

Blitzo was drained. He had put everything into the attack, and it had still failed.

"D-damn. So close," he muttered.

"Ahahaha! You'll never beat me!"

"Maybe not," said Blitzo. "But I can still try!"

He dashed to Cuo once again, who blocked the punch easily. He tried again, but it was also blocked.

"_Damn," _he thought. For the third time, he punched, but Cuo was gone by the time the fist finished its path.

"What? Where'd he go?" cried Blitzo.

"Blitzo, look out behind you!" screamed Rhuna.

It was too late. Blitzo's blood ran cold as he felt his tail get grabbed from behind. As quick as a flash, every single bit of his power vanished. Accompanying the loss in strength was a terrible, racking pain. Blitzo screamed; he couldn't help himself.

Cuo cackled evilly. "I've got you now, you dirty monkey! Now you're powerless." He squeezed slightly, making Blitzo scream again.

Makurin quietly signalled to Rhuna and they both raised their hands, preparing to shoot energy beams. But Cuo noticed instantly.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. Any sudden moves and Blitzo dies."

Rhuna lowered her hands, but Makurin didn't. His face was a mask of rage as he glared with pure hatred at Cuo.

"You still won't win! You may have disabled Blitzo, but you still have to get through me."

Cuo grinned, and squeezed tightly. Blitzo didn't scream this time. He was in too much pain.

"Stop it," Rhuna said to Makurin. "You're only hurting Blitzo."

Makurin was still for several seconds, then lowered his arms to his sides. Cuo smiled, and tightened his grip.

**000**

Ferris hurtled through the air back towards the battlefield. Just minutes before, he had sensed the death of the weaker alien, Porter. To his shock, he also noticed the raised energy levels of one of the Saiyans.

"_He's still no match for the fish-faced one, though," _he thought. "_I've got to help him."_

The words of Rhuna rung in his ears.

"_Now get out of here, or _I'll_ kill you!"_

Would she still do it if he came back now? Maybe. Rhuna struck as a person who would do what was necessary if she had too.

"_Would she really kill me? Oh well, it doesn't matter now. I'm going back whether Rhuna likes it or not. I have to try and help."_

Ferris had ordered Kenta to stay back. If Ferris died, at least one of them would remain to alert the world of the threat that Cuo posed.

He shook the thought from his mind and sped on.

"_Nearly there..."_

**000**

Blitzo fell to his knees. The only thing that stopped him from falling completely was Cuo holding him up by his tail. Cuo laughed once more.

"You know, Blitzo? Soon you'll be dead, and your friends too, and I'll have the honour of wiping out the last Saiyans. Quite a feat, isn't it?"

Blitzo managed to choke out a few words. "Th-that's not t-true. P-Prince V-Vegeta lives on."

Cuo frowned. "I really hate that little squirt. It's only a matter of time before Frieza orders his death."

"Too b-bad you w-won't be the one t-to do it, eh C-Cuo? Cause you'll be d-dead!"

"Oh, I do wish you'd stop saying that, Blitzo. It's getting so old, and it's not true!"

Blitzo managed a grin. "Isn't it?"

Something in his voice made Cuo think twice. He turned just in time to throw his head back and avoid getting decapitated by a red sword. The blade continued on its path and chopped Blitzo's tail off at the base. Cuo fell backwards, holding the still-moving tail.

Meanwhile, Blitzo stumbled forwards, onto all fours. As soon as his tail had been severed, his strength had come back instantly. He was still exhausted though, and could barely move.

Cuo had recovered to see the source of the red sword. A young man had flown between Blitzo and Cuo, and while trying to kill Cuo, had inadvertently saved Blitzo by cutting off his tail and restoring his strength. As he straightened up, Cuo recognised him as one of the two Haviens from before. As Cuo watched in anger, the man reached into his pocket and pulled out a miniscule object.

"Blitzo, catch!" he shouted, and threw the object at Blitzo. The Saiyan caught it, and had a closer look. It was a tiny ball, dark green and wrinkly, about the size of a thumbnail.

"What is it?" he called.

"It's called a Gaman Pea! Just eat it, you'll know why soon! Now, let's end this!"

Ferris spun around to Cuo, swung Shinsou in a deadly horizontal arc at Cuo's neck.

"You're finished!"

Cuo retaliated by raising his right arm. Shinsou struck the arm, and shattered. Ferris' eyes widened as his sword was broken. Shards of red steel flew everywhere, piercing Ferris' arms and legs, but simply bouncing off Cuo. Ferris was left with a small three inch long blade on the end of the handgrip. He was frozen by shock.

Cuo swung an arm, slugging Ferris in the stomach. The Havien's eyes bulged even more, and he doubled over, clutching his stomach, and staggered backwards. Suddenly he retched, and vomited all over the ground. Mixed in with the spew was a large amount of blood.

""J-just eat the G-Gaman," he murmured, and looked up just in time to see Cuo's foot rocketing at his face. The boot struck him in the forehead, and he blasted backwards a good twenty metres. Cuo vanished and appeared behind him, stopping his flight with a kick to the back of the neck. A loud crack resounded out, and Ferris felt everything below his head go limp. He couldn't feel anything, and knew that his neck was broken. It was a miracle that he was still alive.

Blitzo quickly stuck the Gaman Pea in his mouth and began to chew. It was extremely tough and hard to bite.

Cuo walked over to Ferris' limp body and picked him up by his throat. He held the body up high and noticed that Ferris was still conscious. He laughed.

"That was quite a brave act you just did, but not a wise one I'm afraid. You saved Blitzo." Cuo raised his hand, pointer finger extended, and placed it on Ferris' forehead. "Too bad he can't save you, eh?"

Rhuna, Makurin and Zeang all gasped as the tip of Cuo's finger glowed. Suddenly, a pink laser shot out, drilling straight through Ferris' skull and piercing his brain, before continuing out the other side. Ferris was dead instantly.

"No!" muttered Blitzo. "How could he? Ferris was defenceless!" Blitzo felt his rage building.

"Aha! Ahaha! I learned that little party trick from Lord Frieza himself!" jeered Cuo. He looked at Blitzo, who was staring straight at the ground, his eyes closed. He was shaking. Then he swallowed the Gaman Pea in his mouth. Cuo smirked.

"What's wrong?" asked Cuo in mock surprise. "Didn't you like my Death Beam? Perhaps I should perform it again." He raised his arm and pointed at Blitzo, who was still staring down. "_On you!"_

His fingertip glowed pink again, and another Death Beam blasted out, heading straight at the young Saiyan.

"BLITZO, LOOK OUT!" screamed Rhuna.

"MOVE!" roared Makurin.

Blitzo did neither. Instead, he raised his right palm, placing it between him and the Death Beam. The pink laser hit the direct centre of his palm. Blitzo didn't even flinch.

"_What?"_ cried Cuo. "That should have killed you."

Blitzo slowly raised his head, and opened his eyes. They were filled with rage. "Not yet," he said. "It's my turn to fight."

Makurin's Scouter, which had miraculously survived Porter's onslaught, suddenly beeped. He gasped.

"No way! His Power Level is massive! It's...it's...it's..."

"It's what?" asked Rhuna impatiently.

Makurin took off his scouter and crushed it in his hand. "IT"S OVER 9000!" he yelled. Little did he know, the Prince of Saiyans himself would say those exact same words years later.

"Great," said Zeang sarcastically. "Now we only have one Scouter left. Rhuna's broke, and so did Blitzo's."

"Didn't you hear what I just said?" replied Makurin. "His Power Level is huge."

Cuo was shocked. _"Over 9000, how is that possible?" _he thought. "_My Power Level's probably gone down, because I'm tired. I'll have to kill him as quickly as possible."_

He rushed forwards and swung a massive punch. Blitzo leaned to the side, and the punch sailed past his face, missing by at least a foot. Cuo's eyes widened. Blitzo delivered a massive uppercut, sending Cuo flying high into the air.

"Incredible! His rage is giving him immense strength!" exclaimed Zeang.

Blitzo took to the skies too, literally erupting upwards. A metre deep crater was left from the force of his take-off. The others were shocked at his power.

"It's amazing," said Rhuna quietly.

Cuo looked on in horror as Blitzo tore through the air towards him. The Saiyan gave a massive punch in the chest, crushing Cuo's armour, then kicked to the side, sending Cuo streaking across the sky again.

"Damn you, Blitzo! Take _this_!"

The purple alien put both his hands forwards, and let loose a barrage of ki blasts at Blitzo, who wasn't fazed at all. Closing his fists, he delivered a set of punches to each ki blast, destroying them easily.

While Blitzo was focusing on the ki blasts, Cuo charged at him with a punch. Blitzo dodged again, and kneed Cuo in the stomach. Cuo gasped, and spittle flew everywhere. Recovering quickly, he punched out with his right arm. Blitzo grabbed his wrist in mid-punch and tugged, pulling Cuo past him. Cuo's arm was pulled straight, and Blitzo smashed Cuo's elbow with the base of his hand. The bone in Cuo's arm snapped in two. Cuo screamed, and grabbed his right arm with his left. Blitzo spun once in the air to gain momentum, and swung his leg in a horizontal arc. The kick had immense power, and sheared straight through Cuo's legs, severing both of them at the calves.

Cuo stopped screaming, and simply looked shocked as his legs fell to the ground. Green blood sprayed out of the wounds, and slowly Cuo fell to the ground, hitting Haven just seconds after his legs. His energy completely vanished, he had no legs, and his right arm was useless. Using his last limb, he propped himself up against a rock.

Blitzo descended to the ground. Flames danced in his eyes, and he placed his arms at diagonal angles to the ground, palms facing forwards. Then, he charged up.

Zeang gasped. "His Power Level's rising even higher than before! It just passed 11,000!"

"How..." whispered Makurin.

"Please...have mercy!" gargled Cuo. But Blitzo paid no attention.

"KEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEN..."

A yellow energy ball appeared in each palm, pulsing with power.

"Where is he getting all of this energy?" muttered Rhuna.

"SEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIII..."

Blitzo bought his hands together in front of his hands. The energy balls merged together, doubling in size.

"No way! His Power is up to 15,000!" screamed Zeang.

GAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNN!" bellowed Blitzo, and thrust his hands forward. The ball turned into a beam, which blasted forwards and enveloped Cuo, vaporising his body.

"Blitzo did it," gasped Rhuna. "He killed Cuo."

She ran over to Blitzo. Makurin and Zeang followed. Together, they congratulated him.

"How did you get so strong?" asked Makurin.

Blitzo shook his head. "I don't know. I was just so angry about Ferris. Wait, Ferris!"

He turned and dashed over to Ferris' body. There was a hole in his head where the Death Beam had gone through. He had a look of surprise on his face.

"Thank-you, Ferris. You are the reason we won."

The four of them stood in silence, until it was broken by a shout.

"Ferris!"

And then Kenta was there. With tears streaking down his face, he knelt next to the body.

"You did well, Ferris. I know you did. Don't worry, I'll bring you back."

Zeang and Rhuna looked at each other.

"What did you say?" Makurin asked.

Kenta looked at him. "I said I'd bring him back to life."

Rhuna knelt down next to Kenta, and put a hand on his arm. "I don't think you understand. He's dead. He can't come back. He's gone."

Kenta shook his head madly, and started searching around in Ferris' pockets. "No, no, I can bring him back!"

"How?" asked Blitzo.

Kenta found what he was looking for, and pulled the orange-yellow ball out of Ferris' pocket. Blitzo realised that Ferris must of grabbed it before the ship was destroyed. "With this," said Kenta.

"How is that going to bring Ferris back to life?" asked Makurin sceptically.

"This is a Dragon Ball. There are seven on the whole planet of Haven. It is said, that when all seven are gathered together, it summons the Eternal Dragon."

"So? What is this "Eternal Dragon?" questioned Makurin.

Kenta smiled slightly. "The Eternal Dragon has the power to grant any wish that it is asked."

"_WHAT?" _gasped Blitzo, Makurin, Rhuna and Zeang, all at once. Blitzo turned to the others.

"Do you know what this means? We can bring back our race, our planet. We can defeat Frieza!"

Kenta shook his head. "It's not that easy. The Dragon can only grant one wish a year. Then, the Dragon Balls are scattered all over Haven, and you have to find them again."

"So? We can do it over a few years."

"That's another thing. A person can only be bought back to life if they've died within a year. And you can only wish for one specific objective a year. So you can bring back the planet, but not the Saiyans; or the Saiyans, but not the planet. Then the Saiyans would suffocate in the vacuum of space. I'm afraid that there is no way to save your race."

"Oh..." sighed Makurin. "Well, I guess that's it then. The Saiyans are doomed."

"Yes," replied Zeang. "I guess so." He turned to Kenta. "We can still bring back Ferris. Tell me, if these Dragon Balls are scattered all over Haven, how are we meant to find them?"

Kenta reached into his pocket, and pulled out a small, circular device. On the screen were 7 flashing dots.

"This is called a Dragon Radar. My sister, Arnika, invented it. It can track the Dragon Balls. Will you help me find them so I can bring back Ferris?"

The Saiyans and Zeang looked at each other.

"I will," said Rhuna.

"Me too," said Zeang.

"We owe Ferris our lives," said Blitzo. "It's only fair we try and bring him back."

Makurin looked at him. "You killed Cuo, not him. We owe _you _our lives."

"Makurin, without Ferris, none of us would be here. And you know it, even if you don't want to admit it," said Blitzo.

Makurin was silent. "Fine," he eventually. "I'll go."

Zeang looked at Kenta.

"Yes," he said. "We will go.

**000**

Finished. This was a long chapter by my standards. Now, I haven't had time to check this for mistakes, since right now it is 4:40 in the morning. Yeah, I don't sleep much, do I? Anyway, I better get to bed, so I'm not gonna have time to check for mistakes.

Oh yeah, about the "Over 9000" reference, I simply couldn't pass up the chance.

C ya soon!


	5. Meet the Saiyans

**Dragon Ball X**

Hi guys! After this chapter, I'll only owe you guys 4 chapters. Hooray, I won't be in too much debt anymore! I'll still be in debt though.

Last time, the battle between Blitzo and Cuo continued. At a crucial moment, Ferris intervened, saving Blitzo by cutting off the Saiyan's tail, which Cuo had grabbed onto. Cuo killed Ferris, and Blitzo's rage exploded. After severing both of Cuo's legs and breaking his arm, Blitzo killed Cuo with the Kensei-Gan, his ultimate attack. After, the Saiyans agreed to help Kenta find the Dragon Balls to bring Ferris back to life.

Now, on with the show...I mean, story.

**000**

Kenta smiled sadly. "Thank-you."

Zeang sighed. "Well, if nobody minds, I'm going back to the ship to see if I can find anything important to take with us."

Rhuna volunteered to go with him. The two of them walked off into the distance. The fight had carried the Saiyans several hundred metres from the original site. Blitzo, Makurin and Kenta stayed where they were, Kenta still kneeling on the ground next to Ferris' body.

"So," said Makurin. "Where do we go first? Where's the nearest Dragon Ball?"

"We can't start the search just yet," answered Kenta.

Makurin looked annoyed. "Why not?" he demanded.

"We have to take Ferris back to our friends. They'll need to know, we can't just keep them in the dark. They'll be excited to meet you guys, that's for sure. Especially Arnika. She's a real science fiction person, that's why she's so into inventing and stuff. She's gonna take the news about Ferris hard though. I think she has a crush on him."

"She's your sister right? The one who made the Dragon Radar?" inquired Blitzo. Kenta nodded.

"That's the one. She perfected it last week, so Ferris and I decided to take it for a spin and find the Dragon Balls."

"Oh yeah, I just remembered," said Blitzo suddenly. "What was that thing that Ferris gave me?"

Kenta was confused. "What thing?"

"It was some sort of bean, or something. It gave me all of my strength back," answered Blitzo. "A Gamack, or something?"

"A Gaman? Ferris gave you a Gaman Pea?" Kenta asked, standing up. He seemed very intrigued.

"Yeah," replied Blitzo. "What exactly do they do?"

"A Gaman Pea is said to completely restore a being's vitality, no matter how depleted it is. The only thing they can't do is bring back the dead. They are extremely rare. I have no idea how Ferris got his hands on one."

"Well, however he did it, we're lucky that he did."

"Yeah,"

Kenta looked around, and noticed the shards of Shinsou lying on the ground.

"No! How did this happen?" he gasped, and ran over to them.

"Cuo broke it," said Blitzo. "Was it valuable?"

"Very. This sword was forged centuries ago by the master craftsman Borg. It's been passed down for generations in my family, along with my sword, Nenriki. My father gave Shinsou to Ferris as a gift when Ferris took me in as his student, six years ago.

"Shinsou must have been sharp. It sliced right through my tail." Blitzo looked sadly at the inch long stump where his tail used to be. "But it was for the best, I guess."

Makurin spoke. Blitzo noticed he had been silent for a while. "A Saiyan without a tail is like a dog without a bone. You've lost your greatest strength, Blitzo."

Blitzo nodded. "True. But I've also lost my greatest weakness."

Makurin looked at him, doubtful. "Even so, I'd rather have a tail than lose it. You can't transform anymore."

Kenta was alarmed. "Transform? Into what?"

Blitzo explained. "When a Saiyan looks directly at a full moon, a change takes place. They grow enormous, into a great ape. Their strength increases enormously."

"The Oozaru," said Makurin. Something in his voice when he said it sounded very menacing to Kenta, who gulped.

"How does not having a tail prevent this?" he asked, confused. Makurin answered.

"The tail produces the hormone that triggers the transformation. No tail, no Oozaru. It's as simple as that."

"Oh," said Kenta, and continued to collect the pieces of Shinsou. "Actually, Blitzo, you seem stronger right now."

"Huh?" questioned Blitzo.

"I can sense energy, remember? You're stronger than you were before."

Kenta noticed Makurin scowling and clenching his fists slowly without realising.

"You too, Makurin."

The Saiyan stopped scowling, and looked a bit more cheerful.

"Really?"

"Yeah. But how?"

"That's another ability of the Saiyans. If we experience near-death in battle, and then recover, our Power Level permanently increases," said Makurin.

Blitzo frowned. Makurin was acting strange. It was almost like he was bitter towards something.

"Wow. You Saiyans are full of surprises," said Kenta.

"So, how much stronger are we?" asked Blitzo.

"It's hard to say how much, but a fair bit."

"Look," said Makurin. "Rhuna and Zeang are nearly back." They were about a hundred metres away.

"Zeang's got the only Scouter. We can ask him," said Blitzo.

The three of them waited until the others had joined them before talking again.

"So, Zeang. Kenta reckons our Power Level's have gone up. Can you check them for us?"asked Blitzo.

"Sure," answered Zeang. He pressed a button on his Scouter and it scanned them all.

"Blitzo, you're 9,000. Makurin is 8,900. Rhuna is the same."

"Should we get going then?" asked Rhuna.

Kenta nodded, and explained about the side trip to Arnika's house.

"There's just one problem. Arnika lives in the middle of a crowded area, so we can't just go flying in. Only a few people in the whole world know how to fly, and we tend to keep it secret. And we can't carry Ferris' body in. We'll have to go by car."

"We'll have to go by _what_?_" _asked Rhuna.

"Car. You guys seriously don't know what a car is?"

The others all shook their heads. Kenta shook his own in disbelief.

"Amazing. You guys are so strong, and so advanced, but you don't even have cars."

Kenta reached into his pocket and pulled out a small cube about the size of a fist. It had a button on one side.

"This is a car," Kenta said, holding it up so they could see.

"Let me get this straight. We're going to travel into the city to see your sister...in this cube?" Makurin was totally bewildered.

"Not as it is," replied Kenta. "But, watch this."

He pressed the button on the cube and quickly tossed it into the air. Suddenly, it expanded and formed into a giant machine. On the side were windows, and as he peered in, Blitzo saw comfortable looking seats. The machine floated a metre or so off the ground.

"_That's _a car," said Kenta.

"Incredible!" breathed Rhuna. "How did this come from that tiny cube?"

"It's called an M-Cube, short for Morphing Cube. My Father invented them years ago, and everyone uses them these days. I don't really understand how they work, but Arnika does, you can ask her later. Well, let's get Ferris inside."

Rhuna and Zeang went to help, but Blitzo pulled Makurin aside.

"What's up," he asked.

"What are you talking about?" answered Makurin stiffly.

"You're acting really weird. Is something wrong?"

"No. Nothing's wrong," said Makurin.

Blitzo saw through it instantly. "Hey, it's me you're talking to. I know you too well to know when something's up. Now spit it out."

Makurin was silent. Finally, he spoke. "It's just that...for years, we've been around equal in strength. Sometimes one of us would pull ahead a bit, but the other would always catch up. And then, today, you just explode, and your Power Level is suddenly huge. Now you're so much more stronger than me."

Blitzo understood straight away. He was a Saiyan after all. "I understand how you feel, but I'm not stronger than you anymore."

"Huh?"

"For a few minutes, my power was huge, but as soon as the rage died, so did the power. Didn't you hear Zeang? My Power Level is only 100 more than yours. And I know that you'll be able to catch up easily. I'm not any stronger than you."

Makurin couldn't help but smile. "Thanks, Blitzo. You're really good at cheering people up, you know?"

Meanwhile, the others had managed to load Ferris into the car. Kenta had also managed to gather up every piece of Shinsou, and had put them in a bag Zeang had retrieved from the ship. Soon, they had all gotten into the car and sped off.

"Can't this bucket of bolts go any faster?"

**000**

With a flourish, Arnika placed the last piece of the thousand-piece-puzzle she had been working on all day. The fifteen year old swept her long brown hair out of her eyes and looked at her finished work of art.

"HA! Kenta sure will be surprised when he sees how quickly I've finished this one," she smirked.

Her father, Don, walked into the room. He was only a bit taller than Arnika, and had large spectacles on.

"You've finished another one already? You're getting better and better at them. But you've got a long way to go before you can beat my record!"

Don's record for finishing a thousand-piece-puzzle was a mere three hours and twenty-seven minutes. His keen eye and sharp mind made it easy for him to put the pieces together in his mind, and then on the table. Even with these attributes, he was very absent-minded.

"I know, Dad. Still I'm getting closer." Arnika sat down on the couch.

Don laughed heartily, and left for his workshop. Arnika heard the doorbell ring, and jumped back up.

"Coming!" she yelled, and walked down the long hallway to the door. Due to Don's riches at the hands of the M-Cube, the house was huge. Arnika reached the door and pulled it open. To her surprise, her older brother stood on the doorstep. Behind him were four people. Ferris was nowhere to be seen.

"Kenta? I thought you were searching for the Dragon Balls! Where's Ferris?"

Kenta swallowed. He looked nervous. "I'll tell you in a minute. Can we come in?"

Arnika looked at the four strangers, one by one.

The first two were both just a bit taller than Kenta. Despite only looking a bit older than Kenta, they were very muscular. Both had pitch black hair, and hard, black eyes.

The third one was a girl. She also had raven black hair. It was cut fairly short for a girl, just above her shoulders. Her eyes were brown, but still tough and unforgiving. She was also muscular, but not to the extent of the first two.

The last guy was just plain weird. Taller than the rest, his head was about two or three times the normal size, with not a single hair was on it, not even eyebrows. He had considerably less muscle, and looked a lot more kind, but he still had a vibe of unhuman strength.

All of them were wearing some sort of strange armour. It was yellow and white, covering their chests and stomachs, but didn't look particularly durable. Somehow, Arnika got the feeling that, even though it looked easily breakable, the armour was unimaginably strong. To Arnika's confusion, one of the guys and the girl had what looked like brown, furry belts around their waists.

"I guess," she said, and stood back to let them through.

"I should hope so, cause it's just as much my house as yours," Kenta said. The four strangers followed him in; looking around as if they'd never stepped into a house before. Kenta walked into the lounge-room, and noticed the puzzle on the table.

"Another one?" he asked. "It never ends."

"Kenta? Where's Ferris? And who are these people?" She tried to smile at the newcomers, but it looked more like some sort of cheerful grimace. Kenta walked right up to her, and whispered in her ear.

"Don't yell, or react in any way. You need to keep this a secret. These guys are aliens, they've just saved Haven from certain destruction, and Ferris is dead."

"_What?"_ she asked, beginning to grin. The smile faded when she noticed that Kenta was deadly serious, to be replaced with an incredulous look.

"Aliens? What a load of bull. And Ferris can't be dead!"

"It's true," piped up the guy with the big head.

"No, it's not. This is just some weird joke that you guys are playing."

Kenta shook his head. "It's no joke. These people have super strength. They are from a race called the Saiyans. Well, he isn't, but the other three are. Show her."

One of the guys nodded, and picked up a small metal statuette from a shelf. To Arnika's amazement, he crushed it between his thumb and pointer finger.

"Oooooh-kaaay, maybe you are telling the truth about them. But Ferris isn't dead. _That's_ a lie."

"No. He is dead," said Kenta sadly. Arnika's eyes filled with tears. Ferris was been handsome, strong, smart, and incredibly brave. He and Arnika got along great. She didn't care that he was twenty-five, and she was only fifteen. He was perfect. Arnika staggered backwards, and sunk into the couch. Her eyes were streaming.

"No," she sobbed. "H-he can't be. H-he isn't."

"I'm sorry, Arnika. I'm upset too, but don't worry. We can bring him back with the Dragon Balls!"

Arnika was still for a full five seconds. Then, she leaped up, hands flying into the air.

"YES!" she screamed. "He's not gone! He can come back!" She stopped celebrating, and glared at Kenta and the others. "Well? Why aren't you out there looking for the Dragon Balls? Come on, come on, you know the time limit, don't you?"

"Calm down! He only died today, we've got a whole year, and with the Dragon Radar we'll have them gathered easily," said Kenta. "But we'll talk about that later. Right now, you have to listen to this."

It took at least an hour to tell the story of what had happened. Arnika was silent the entire time, awe-struck, as she listened to Kenta rabbit on about the Saiyans. Finally, it was over.

"Wow," she said. "I can't believe it. That really is amazing."

"I know," said Kenta.

"And now, we need to find the Dragon Balls to bring back Ferris," said Zeang. "We've got one, but we need the other six to get Ferris back."

Arnika nodded. "Well, at least my Dragon Radar works. That's good to know." She leant back, and dragged her fingers through her hair. "Man, this is mind-blowing, my brain is hurting. I need something to focus on." Standing up, she went to a cupboard and started rummaging around. She returned with yet another thousand-piece puzzle.

"This'll take my mind off things," she said, and tipped all of the pieces out onto the floor.

Zeang sat on the floor as well. "How does this work?" he asked.

"You have to match up the pieces," she answered. "Each piece has part of a picture on it, and if you put them together right, you get the whole picture. They're pretty hard if they have loads of pieces."

Zeang smiled, and started placing pieces together easily. Arnika (as well as Kenta, Blitzo, Makurin and Rhuna) watched in amazement as Zeang put piece by piece together, barely faltering at all. Within ten minutes, the puzzle was complete.

"Child's play," said Zeang confidently.

Arnika looked at him, and then Kenta, and then back to Zeang, her mouth open and her eyes wide. Suddenly, she broke into a big grin.

"I think that I'm gonna like having you guys around."

**000**

Finished! Sorry it took so long. I actually originally intended this and the next chapter to be one, but this turned out longer than I expected. I've been planning the next bit for a while though, and it's a really fun part, so I should update tomorrow, because I'll be really looking forwards to writing it. I might update Aura Adventure too. Right now, my poll is equal, one vote for writing this and putting AA on hold, and one for writing AA and putting this on hold. We still have a while till the poll ends, so we'll have to wait and see.

Well, Cya!


	6. The Hunt Begins

**Dragon Ball X**

Another update! I'm getting better, aren't I? Only 3 chapters owed after this.

Last time, the Saiyans, Kenta and Zeang stopped off at Kenta's house to drop off Ferris' body. While there, they met Arnika, Kenta's sister.

THE END. Nah, just kidding.

**000**

Kenta, Arnika and their father, Don, were all standing quite still, eyes wide. Zeang stood next to them, a grim expression on his face.

"I don't believe it," said Arnika.

"Oh my," said Don, taking off his glasses and cleaning them.

"Is that even possible?" asked Kenta.

"Oh, it's possible," said Zeang, as together they stared at the three Saiyans. "I had to put up with this three times a day back home."

"Nobody can do that, though." remarked Arnika.

"You wouldn't think so, would you?" replied Zeang, smiling in spite of the situation. "But they can."

Blitzo looked up from the dinner table. A huge stack of plates was piled in front of him. "What? We like food," he said, and ate a whole chicken leg in three seconds.

Don poked his head into the kitchen. "Keep 'em coming, Leo."

"No worries. You know, you are _really _lucky that you can afford all this food," said the family's personal chef, Leo.

"I know, eh? I never knew that they could have such a veracious appetite," answered Don, and returned to the others. They were standing next to the table, watching the Saiyans literally devour every single piece of food placed in front of them.

Zeang watched in disgust as Makurin tipped his head back and tipped a bowl of rice into his mouth.

"Mmm. Nice chow. Tell Leo thanks from me."

"Add my compliments too," said Rhuna. Even though she was eating more politely than the other two, she had still consumed about twenty or thirty times the amount any Havien could. "Oh no! We're out of curry. Tell Leo to get some more in here, quick snap. It's my favourite."

"You know," said Kenta to Zeang. "Even if a half-starved man who's survived on nothing but dead rats and mouldy cheese for the past ten years sat down at a table with them, they would still eat double what he eats."

"I know. Because Saiyans have such large amounts of energy, the need a lot of food to keep them going," said Zeang. "I hope this isn't any trouble," he added towards Don.

"What? Oh, no no no. We're happy to have you here. Besides, we're easily rich enough to pay for this. Compared to the amount of tax I pay a month, this is nothing. We are the richest family in the world, you know." Don waved a hand emphasise his point.

Finally, the three wild dogs sat back in their chairs.

"Man, that was good," said Makurin.

"Tell me about it. Even at home the food isn't as delicious," added Rhuna.

Blitzo simply closed his eyes and smiled.

**000**

When Blitzo woke the next morning, he found Zeang in Arnika's laboratory. She was also there, watching as he fiddled around with something. Suddenly, a giant screen on the wall flickered on, with a green map of the whole of Haven on it. Seven red dots were flashing on it. Two of them were very close together.

"Done," said Zeang smugly.

"Incredible," breathed Arnika, and she ran over to the screen and typed rapidly into a keyboard protruding from the wall below it. As Blitzo watched from the doorway, the map zoomed in onto the two close dots.

"Anyone care to tell me what this is?" asked Blitzo.

Zeang grabbed his arm and pulled him closer to the screen. "Of course! Behold, the Dragon Radar!"

"Huh? I thought that was the Dragon Radar," said Blitzo, pointing to where it was sitting on the workbench.

Zeang nodded vigorously. He tended to get very excited when he was in the "machine mood", as he called it. "Yes, yes it is! But so is this!"

"That didn't explain anything," replied Blitzo.

This time Arnika answered. "We made this one to see it on both a larger and smaller scale."

"That made even less sense than before. How it can it be small and large at the same time?" Blitzo had never been one for science.

"Simple! This Dragon Radar can zoom in and out!" said Zeang, a grin plastered across his face. It fell slightly when he saw that Blitzo still didn't understand.

"Why do we need it to zoom?"

"Both of you be quiet." A voice rang out behind Blitzo as Don walked into the room. "_I'll_ explain it. You see, Blitzo, the original, Dragon Radar has numerous advantages and disadvantages. Initially, it appears to be defect-less, as it is compact, straightforward to use, and elementary to construct. However, it has a fatal design flaw. While it can effortlessly point someone in the correct direction, and inform them of the expanse required to travel, it cannot pinpoint the Dragon Ball's precise location. It could be in the middle of a lava pit. It could be at the bottom of a vast lake. However, with this amazing new model, you can easily locate the Dragon Ball, and view the territory around it on this world map. Of course, this comes at a hefty price of being very large, and takes a while to build."

There was a long pause, during which Blitzo just stared at don, his mouth slightly open. Finally, he spoke. "You lost me at 'you see, Blitzo'".

Arnika burst out laughing. Don also began to laugh. Zeang smiled, and then tried to explain to Blitzo in the simplest words he could think of.

"Alright, how should I put this? This bigger radar is better because you can see the whole world, and show where all of the Dragon Balls are at once. Then, you can zoom in and look at the area around it, to see if it's water, or mountains, or whatever. It can find the Dragon Ball's _exact_ position, give or take one metre. Then, you can go there and get it. The only trouble is, it's too big to carry around. Plus, it's built right into the wall. We can't really go ripping it out."

"Oh, OK. Why didn't you guys just say it like that in the first place?"

"We're used to using smart-speak," smirked Don, and walked out of the room.

"So, where's the nearest Dragon Ball?" asked Blitzo.

Arnika zoomed into the two close ones again. She pointed at one. "That's our one. The closest one is this one. It's right here in the city. Someone must own it. You'll have to barter it from them." She moved the camera over to the other one and groaned.

"What, what is it?" asked Zeang. The Radar showed that the Dragon Ball was in a huge mansion.

"That's Baldwin Coster's house."

"Who's he?"

"Five years ago, he was the World Martial Arts Champion. But, so that no one could claim his title, he pretended to hurt his back. His "doctor" told him that he could still fight, but he wasn't allowed to go in the tournaments anymore. Since no one can fight him officially, no one can take his title from him."

"How do you know that he was only pretending to injure his back? Maybe he really did hurt it," said Blitzo.

Arnika looked at him. "It was pretty obvious. Old Coster was in his bed, moaning for hours on end about his back. The second the doctor told him the news, he was fine. They'd been friends for years, so it was probably set up between them."

"Sounds like a sleazebag," said Makurin from the doorway. Rhuna was with him. They had heard the story.

"The trouble is, he's rich, so we can't buy the Dragon Ball from him. We'll have to find another way to get it."

"Maybe we can cut him a deal," said Rhuna.

**000**

Ten minutes later, they were standing outside Coster Mansion. Arnika had stayed home, but Kenta had joined the rest. As the five of them watched, the door opened, and a muscular man walked out. He had no hair, and was wearing a white singlet with blue shorts. He was huge. Under his arm was another, considerably smaller man, who was looking frightened.

"That's him. The big one. It's Coster," said Kenta grimly.

Coster threw the other man down. "Don't come back!"

The man picked himself up, and glared at the small group. "What do you want?" he said loudly, almost crying.

"Calm down, it's OK. What happened?" asked Zeang.

"There's a big exhibition thing in there. Loads of cameras and reporters. Coster and all his cronies are beating the snot out of people like me. I used to be a servant in the Coster Mansion, until he forced me to fight. Now I'm out of work."

The man ran off. Blitzo and Makurin glanced at each other. Zeang and Kenta looked worried. Rhuna was furious. She stormed up to the door and almost ripped it off its hinges.

"What are you doing?" asked Kenta, rushing after her.

"Cutting him a deal," she said, and disappeared inside. Kenta also went in, and Blitzo, Makurin and Zeang followed.

After walking down a hallway, they emerged into a massive stadium built into the house. People were sitting in the grandstands, cheering, as Coster tomb-stoned a skinny kid. The kid was knocked out straight away.

"Bad back, eh?" said Kenta scornfully.

While the unfortunate teen's unconscious body was carried out of the ring, Rhuna stormed down and climbed in. The rest of the group followed her, making it clear that she was with them.

Coster was amused. "What's a little lady like you doing in here? You might get hurt."

"Cut the crap!" she said. The crowd went silent, waiting for Coster's reaction. Instead of getting angry, he grinned. Rhuna could see several filthy teeth.

"That's not polite. Anyway, what do you want?"

Rhuna got straight to the point. "I'm challenging you to a fight."

The crowd roared, laughing and jeering. Coster laughed too. "Are you serious? You wouldn't stand a hope against me."

"I beg to differ."

Coster looked at her. "Fine. But don't go crying to Mummy when I kick your ass so hard it flies out your mouth."

Rhuna glared at him. It was so venomous that Coster's smile actually fell a little.

"In your possession is a small orange ball with stars on it. If I win, it's mine."

"Now, now. If I'm losing something, then it's only fair that you put something at stake too."

Coster pointed at a much younger boy. He was also fairly muscular, even though he only looked about 18.

"If I win, then you go on a date with my son Dudley after you get out of hospital."

The crowd broke into more cheers. Dudley smiled tauntingly at Rhuna, who almost vomited at the thought of a date with him. Luckily for her, it wasn't gonna happen.

"Fine."

Coster grinned broadly. "We may as well book the table at Pomodoro's now!" he yelled, to the crowd's delight. They were all on his side. Blitzo, Kenta, Makurin and Zeang stood behind Rhuna, however, backing her up. Together, they turned and left the ring to watch. Blitzo sidled up behind Rhuna before they left.

"Take it easy. Don't go too overboard."

"I'll try not to. But you never know."

Blitzo gulped, and hurried away. Back on Planet Vegeta, Rhuna was known for her fiery temper. Blitzo also knew that she was also pretty ruthless. Coster had definitely bit off a hell of a lot more than he could chew.

"Rhuna's gonna cream this guy," said Makurin confidently.

The bell dinged, and the fight began. Coster took large, slow steps towards Rhuna, and pretended to duck and weave around her. She stared at him. The crowd cheered him on.

Coster stopped dancing, and punched Rhuna very lightly on the shoulder, then pretended to be all out of breath, puffing and wheezing.

"Wow. She's good, boys. I don't how I'm going to do this," he called, and the crowd laughed like it the funniest thing in the world. Coster walked back up to Rhuna and shoved his face close to hers. She hadn't moved the whole fight, just stared at him with hatred.

"Free shot," he said. "Go ahead."

The crowd heard, and began to cheer him for being such a gentlemen. Blitzo couldn't believe his ears. This had to be the most corrupt audience he had ever seen.

Rhuna glared at Coster for ten seconds more, then slowly lifted her hand and flicked him on the nose.

Coster's head shot back, and he staggered rearwards, trying to regain his balance. The pain in his face was enormous.

"_That was unnatural",_ he thought. "_That hurt more than a full-force punch from most men_."

The crowd was still cheering. They thought that Coster was just acting. And boy, were they wrong.

Recovering, he walked back to Rhuna.

"OK. Enough playing. Take this!"

He swung his fist at Rhuna, who dodged easily. Coster's eyes widened, and he swung again. Once more, she ducked under his blow. Angrily, he started punching as fast as he could. Rhuna leaned and ducked past every punch that flew at her. The crowd has gone noticeably silent.

Kenta looked around. "Good, that noise was giving me headache."

"Agreed," said Makurin. "I'll bet they didn't expect this."

Rhuna was still effortlessly dodging every punch that came close. Coster was sweating like mad, and his face was as red as a beetroot. Finally, he stepped back, exhausted.

"Y-You. Damn you!"

The corners of Rhuna's mouth tilted up slightly. She stuck her head out, and pointed to it.

"I'll give you one free shot. Then you'll surrender if you know what's good for you."

Coster stepped forwards, anger etched over every square centimetre of his face. The crowd cheered again, spurring him on. Mustering up as much energy as he could, he swung his fist at Rhuna's face, intending to knock her out in one blow.

She didn't even flinch. Coster's fist thundered into her cheek, and stopped dead. Coster gave a yelp of pain, but managed to pass it off as a cough. Angrily, he took another swing.

"You'll pay for that!"

Rhuna's eyes flashed in anger, and faster than was havienly possible, she raised her hand and caught Coster's fist. Coster's eyes widened in shock, and as one the audience drew their breath.

"I said," murmured Rhuna, "to surrender if you know what's good for you. So now, _you'll_ pay."

Coster's expression turned from shock and anger to extreme pain in mere seconds, as Rhuna began to squeeze. To Coster, it felt like his hand was being crushed in a car compacter. The pain was horrendous. Suddenly, the former World Martial Arts Champion screamed out as the bones in his hand shattered. Rhuna grinned sadistically, and she let go.

Coster was silent, his mouth open in a silent scream as he cradled his fist in his other hand.

"You really should have given up," said Rhuna. She hovered up into the air, and performed a colossal bicycle kick. It hit Coster in the chin, and to the crowd's astonishment, he flew ten metres into the air and crashed to the ground.

Kenta flinched. "I think that _just _might have overdone it."

There was silence for thirty seconds, and then medics rushed to Coster. He was stone cold out of it, and every single one of his teeth had been knocked out. Blood poured from his mouth. Everyone stared in pure fear at Rhuna.

Suddenly, an unexpected sound rang out, and everyone turned to see Blitzo clapping cheerfully.

"Well done, well done, bravo!" he called.

Makurin shook his head in disbelief and amusement. He looked into the crowd and noticed a teenager with a video camera in his hands. The boy caught his eye nervously. Makurin broke contact, looking at Rhuna, then at Coster's body, and then at the boy, and narrowed his eyes. The kid went as white as paper, and under Makurin's watchful eye, pulled the memory card out of the camera and snapped it in two. Makurin nodded, smiling pleasantly and turned back to the others, smirking.

With every eye in the room on her, Rhuna turned to Dudley.

"Since your Father is unavailable, perhaps _you_ can fetch me my prize."

Dudley nodded hurriedly. "Yes, of course Ma'am."

Within minutes, he returned, and passed the Dragon Ball to Rhuna. She inspected it, and then nodded. The Saiyan girl turned and left, the others following close behind, leaving a stunned audience behind them.

"Well," said Blitzo when they got back into fresh air. "That went well, didn't it?"

"It was kind of frightening. I only now realise just how strong you guys are," said Kenta.

"Humph. I wasn't even trying. He's just a wuss."

"So, let's go back to the house then," said Zeang.

"Wait until Arnika hears about this. She hates Coster. I bet you fifty bucks that the first thing she says when we tell her is 'HA!'"

**000**

Sorry it took so long. So now I only owe you 3 chapters.

As I said last chapter, this was originally meant to be at the end of last chapter. Now I realise how wrong I was for thinking I could fit in this whole chapter. I enjoyed writing this, though. It's fun making the Saiyans completely obliterate Haviens.

Holidays end tomorrow, so I can't update tomorrow night. I guess I'll have to go back to weekly chapters. Luckily this is only an eight week term.

See you all soon!


	7. Evil Awakens

**Dragon Ball X**

**000**

Stars glittered in the night sky, and far below, a simple farmer named Hugh sighed as he packed away his tools for the night. It had been a rough few months: the crops refused to grow, his cows had caught some sort of disease, and his chickens wouldn't lay eggs.

"_Why me?" _he asked himself for the millionth time that week. As he walked out of the toolshed towards his house, he glanced over one of his fields. The small saplings inside wouldn't fetch any money at all at the Farmer's Market that was coming up in two weeks. This winter was going to be a hard one.

Hugh thought about his family, his wife Selina, and his baby daughter, Alice. As he conjured her smiling face into her mind, a small smile of his own grew. It faded quickly, though, as he looked back over the fields. He could have sworn that he just saw a small spark flash in the sky.

"_What was that?"_

He continued staring upwards, his keen eyes not blinking once, in case he missed it should it happen again."

"_There it is again!"_

Once more, a spark of electricity exploded against the darkness. It was blue in colour, and almost blinded Hugh. This time, he caught the small cracking noise that came with it.

"_I wonder what it is. Odd."_

He turned to go back into the farmhouse when it happened again. And it was getting larger and louder every time. Hugh was hungry, and wanted to get inside for dinner, but curiosity kept him out, searching for the source of this strange sight.

And so he was slightly upset when he stood for another five minutes and it didn't occur once more. He shrugged his shoulders. "_Damn. Oh well. I better get inside, Selina will be waiting."_

And then it happened. Just above his field there was a mighty explosion, and Hugh was blown right off his feet. Accompanying the explosion was a colossal burst of sound, and the poor Havien farmer was almost deafened. Slowly, he recovered his vision and hearing.

"_By the Kai's, what was that?"_

Everything had gone dark again, completely silent. Slowly, Hugh stood back up and peered into the darkness of the field. The light of the house only just reached him, anything beyond that was pitch-black. As his eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness, he thought he spied a human shaped figure standing in the middle of the field.

"Hello? Is anybody there? Show yourself!" he called.

The reply only just reached his ears. The voice was low, gravelly, and made his blood run cold.

"Free, at last."

The voice laughed softly. Hugh's neck hairs stood on end.

"Finally, I'm free, after two hundred and fifty years, I'm free!"

Hugh summoned some courage. "Hello! I said, show yourself!"

The figure fell silent. Very slowly, it turned its head to face Hugh. Then, still painstakingly slow, it began to walk towards him, stopping just before it reached the light.

"Who are you?" asked Hugh nervously.

The silhouette was silent. Then it spoke, in the same awful voice.

"Where are the Dragon Balls?"

"What?" asked Hugh.

"Where are the Dragon Balls? Tell me or else."

"Dragon Balls? But those are just a legend. Now, if you don't mind, could you leave my farm? I want to get to bed."

"I'm not leaving until you tell me."

Hugh grew flustered. "I don't know where they are! I don't even think that they exist!"

The figure raised a hand, the palm facing towards Hugh's house.

"Tell me."

"I said I don't know! Now, _please leave!"_

The figure didn't answer. Suddenly its hand glowed. Some sort of fireball shot out of its palm and blasted straight at the house.

"NO!" yelled Hugh, in alarm.

The ball flew straight through the open bedroom window and exploded, completely destroying the entire building. Flaming shards of wood were hurled into the air, and a fire started in the wreckage.

"Selina. Alice. Please, no!" whispered Hugh, falling to his knees. "You monster!"

"Perhaps now you'll be enticed to tell me where I can find the Dragon Balls," said the figure.

"I told you, _I don't know!" _roared Hugh. "How could you kill them? They were innocent!"

His face fell, tears streaming down his cheeks.

"Then you are of no use to me," said the figure, and it extended its arm into the light. Hugh caught his breath at the sight.

The skin of the hand was a light grey and very smooth. The fingers, on the other hand, were a much darker shade, bordering on black. Halfway up the arm was a short, but deadly sharp spike, jutting out about three inches.

"What _are_ you?" Hugh gasped.

"Say goodbye."

The hand grabbed Hugh by the neck and closed around his throat. Suddenly the fingers tightened, and ripped out his oesophagus. Blood spewed everywhere. Hugh's lifeless body crumpled to the ground.

The figure wiped the blood off his hand onto Hugh's shirt.

"Believe me, my friend. You won't be the last."

**000**

"HA!" laughed Arnika loudly.

Makurin scowled, and turned to Kenta. "Looks like I owe you fifty bucks."

Kenta smirked. "I know."

"So you got the Ball, then? Let's see it," said Don, pushing his spectacles up his nose, to his eyes. Rhuna took the ball out of her pocket and placed it on the table.

"The 7-Star Dragon Ball."

"Amazing," breathed Arnika. "Only five left, now."

"So," said Blitzo. "Do we have time to get another one today?"

Arnika nodded. "I think so. It'll take a while to get there though; you'll have to fly pretty fast."

Zeang looked at Kenta. "I think we should stay behind. The Saiyans can fly a lot faster than the two of us can. We'll just slow them down."

Kenta nodded. "I understand. Where exactly is it?"

Arnika turned and gestured towards the door. "To the laboratory!"

She strode out the door. Don followed close behind, and after a short pause, the others followed suit. By the time they got to the lab, Arnika had already started up the Large Dragon Radar.

"OK," she said, zooming in on the house. Two dots were flashing on top of it. "As you know, we're here. Now, the next Dragon Ball is all the way over here."

She typed quickly, and the map zoomed out and focused in on a point at least 300 kilometres away.

"It should take you guys about an hour and a half to get there, flying at full speed. You should be back by dinner if you leave now."

Blitzo nodded. "Let's go then. We can't miss dinner."

Rhuna and Makurin nodded urgently. Zeang rolled his eyes.

"Wait. Before you go, take this."

Arnika picked up a small device off one of the many shelves around the room. She passed it to Rhuna, who stared at it blankly.

"What is it?"

Arnika looked at her. "You don't know what a mobile phone is?"

Rhuna peered at the phone. "Nope," she said slowly. "How does it work?"

Arnika's face was pure surprise. Then it changed back to normal. "You don't need to know yet. All you need to know is that if it vibrates, and plays a song, then you press that green button, OK?"

"And then what?"

"Then you put that end to your ear and listen. You can talk into _that_ end. Then we'll be able to talk to each other. Cool, isn't it?"

Rhuna wasn't convinced. "Not really. Scouters can do that just as easily. Well, see ya!"

The three Saiyans turned to leave. "Hold it," said Kenta. "Don't forget, on the way, to pass the boredom, try sensing each other's energy, like I taught you. It'll be good practice."

The night before, Kenta had given the four newcomers a lesson on sensing people's ki. Zeang, with his heightened mental capacity, had picked it up easy, and could already sense people from thousands of kilometres. Rhuna, Blitzo and Makurin had encountered considerably more difficulty. Out of the three Saiyans, Makurin was easily the best, although he was nowhere near the level of Kenta or Ferris, or even Zeang.

"We will," said Blitzo. "Come on, guys. Dinner's waiting."

As they walked out the front door, Rhuna passed the phone to Blitzo. "Here," she said. "Now it's your responsibility if it breaks."

**000**

The others watched them go.

"Zeang?" asked Kenta.

"Heh?" grunted Zeang in response.

"Can I ask you something? About Blitzo?"

"Go ahead."

Kenta noticed that Arnika and Don both seemed very interested in his question as well.

"Why is he different to Makurin and Rhuna?"

Zeang glanced at him. "What do you mean?"

"Well...he just seems less...ruthless, I guess. He seems to care more. Makurin's much more proud, and rough, and Rhuna actually scared me at Coster's house. And yet, Blitzo's stronger, but has more heart."

Zeang smiled ruefully. "Ah, yes. I know exactly what you mean. And trust me, if you had of seen a full-grown Saiyan, you would not think that Rhuna and Makurin were ruthless either." He gestured towards the sitting room. "Take a seat, I'll tell you about it."

Don, Arnika and Kenta sat down on the couch, and Zeang sat down opposite. Arnika thought that he looked slightly sad, as if what he was about to say was painful.

"Now, the thing you need to know about Saiyans is, they spare no thought for mercy; they have no sympathy whatsoever. They love fighting, and are probably the finest fighting race in the universe. And so, when Frieza came along, they seemed like the perfect army. He shanghaied them into his service, and from then on, the Saiyans worked for that monster. Some Saiyans liked it, in fact, most did. They all hated Frieza, but they enjoyed the...opportunities, let's say, that he provided for them."

"What's this got to do with Blitzo?" asked Arnika.

Zeang looked annoyed. "I'm getting to it. Anyway, so Frieza sent the Saiyans on missions, eradicating life on foreign planets so that he could sweep in and take over, selling them on the World Trade Organisation. He was in complete control of at least one hundred planets."

"That's awful," said Don.

"But what's it got to do with Blitzo?" asked Arnika again.

"I was just about to explain that. Perhaps it will surprise you to learn that Blitzo wasn't always as kind as he is now. When he was a little kid, he used to be like any other Saiyan. Energetic and cruel, willing to kill just to get what they want."

"So what made him change?"

"Well, I'll tell you. Growing up, Blitzo had a friend. They were inseparable. His name was Gohron. And he was the exact opposite to a normal Saiyan. Gohron was born exactly one year before Blitzo. Blitzo idolised him, and Gohron returned the favour. They were the best of friends, never once arguing, or disagreeing. Except on one thing."

"What was that?" asked Kenta.

"As I said before, Blitzo was like any other Saiyan child. But Gohron was different. He hated killing. The rumour was that he had some rare condition, and made his brain develop differently. Others thought it was because of his father dying in battle when he was only five years old. But whatever the reason, Gohron was different indeed. He never killed if he could help it. He refused to go on missions and, if he was forced to go, let his team-mates do all the work, refusing to fight to kill. Sure, he loved to fight, all Saiyans do, but he didn't like causing unnecessary pain. Despite this, he was an excellent fighter, the best of his age group. As far as I know he only ever lost one fight, if you could call it a fight. And that fight was the reason Blitzo changed."

"What happened?"

"Well, unlike most Saiyans, Gohron treasured family."

"You mean Saiyans don't like their family?"

"It's not that they don't like them, it's more that a Saiyan doesn't care what happens to them. As far as a Saiyan is concerned, only their own health matters. They don't show sadness, even when a family member dies. Some do, but most don't. And if a Saiyan can't fight, or is injured, that Saiyan will sometimes be killed to get him out of the way.

Anyway, Gohron treasured his family, what was left of it. Remember, his father died when he was very young. All he had left was his older brother, Zukin. He was the only person Gohron loved more than Blitzo."

"What happened to him?" asked Don in a hushed voice. Zeang hesitated, as if the words caught in his throat, but forged on.

"Four years ago, Zukin was killed on a mission for Frieza. Now, most Saiyans would be glad that their family died fighting, but not Gohron. He was heartbroken, and furious at Frieza. One of the only people left to him had been killed, and as far as Gohron was concerned, it was all Frieza's fault. His rage broke. So he flew straight to the capital, and slaughtered anyone who tried to stop him. That was the only time he killed willingly. He broke right into Frieza's chamber, went up to him, and told him that they Saiyans were no longer Frieza's to command, that they were free. And then he made the worst mistake possible, and tried to punch Frieza. He wasn't thinking clearly. His rage drove him to do it."

"What did Frieza do?" whispered Arnika. She was pale.

"First, I need to tell you. Frieza _is _ruthless. A Saiyan's cruelty is nothing compared to his. He killed for no reason other than the sheer pleasure of it, and his henchmen would fight to the death over who had to deliver bad news to him. And so, when Gohron tried to punch him, he didn't even hesitate. He just shot a Death Beam straight through Gohron's heart."

Arnika put her hand over her mouth. Don was sweating. Kenta looked shocked. "That's horrible."

Zeang nodded. "Frieza got one of his guards to carry Gohron out. No one ever saw him again. And Blitzo, his best friend, was shattered. It was only from then on that Blitzo fully understood what Gohron had been going on about his whole life. That life is sacred. Only then did Blitzo understand how Gohron felt, everyday. And from then on, Blitzo was changed. He modelled himself after Gohron, and strived to emulate him. And _that _is why Blitzo is different, why he's kind. _That's _why his rage exploded when he saw Ferris get murdered by Cuo. For him, it was like Gohron all over again."

Arnika was now as white as a sheet. Kenta was staring at the wall, his eyes wide, not blinking. No one spoke. Suddenly, an alarm went off. Don and Arnika both immediately adopted looks of surprise and shock, and quickly vanished into Arnika's lab. Kenta and Zeang both looked at each other, and followed suit.

"What is it? What's that alarm?" asked Zeang, confused.

No one answered. Don and Arnika were both bent over a computer screen, which was going crazy, flashing lights all over the screen. Arnika rapidly typed into the keyboard, and the display changed to a set of statistics.

"Oh no," she whispered. "That can't be."

Don squeezed in for a look, and he too, was horrified.

"That's impossible. There's no way it could be that big!"

"What can't be that big?" asked Kenta.

Zeang shoved both Arnika and Don out of the way, and looked at the screen himself. Kenta saw his expression change.

"Oh my God! That's huge!"

"_What's huge!"_ shouted Kenta angrily. The other three looked around urgently.

"An asteroid," said Don. "Heading straight for Haven."

**000**

Well, that's my shortest chapter for this story. Sorry about the wait.

So, how will this asteroid be stopped? Find out on the next chapter of Dragon Ball X!


	8. Applause of Mass Destruction

**Dragon Ball X**

Me: Guess what, kids! What time of the year is it?

Me in a kid's voice: The Christmas holidays!

Me: And what does that mean?

Me in a kid's voice: A more frequent rate of chapter distribution...hopefully.

That's right, I've got absolutely crap-loads of time off, so in about a week I'll be so bored that the only thing left to do is write stories.

Now, enough of my crap, let's get into the story. I've been updating Aura Adventure a bit lately, so it's been a while since I've last gotten a chapter in for DBX. As I'm sure you know, last time on DBX, Zeang explained to the Haviens about Blitzo's past, and about his old friend, Gohron, who was killed by Frieza. Suddenly, they were interrupted by an alert about an asteroid heading straight for Haven.

**000**

"An asteroid?" asked Kenta, confused. "But...don't asteroids hit Haven all the time?"

Zeang nodded. "Yes. Most planets are regularly invaded by asteroids. However, the majority of them are tiny, miniscule, and the rest are not a lot bigger."

"So, what's the deal with this one, then?"

"Well...um..." Zeang twisted his hands together nervously, evidently trying to find a way to describe the asteroid.

"It's damn huge," said Don. Zeang nodded in thanks.

"Yes, you could put it that that way."

"How huge, exactly?" asked Kenta.

"I'm afraid that it's the size of a large city."

"No way!" gasped Kenta. "It can't be that big! If it hits, it'll wipe out everyone for miles!"

"Exactly," Zeang mumbled. He suddenly became aware of the other three staring at him expectantly. "What?"

"Well?" Arnika said. "You're super strong, right? Just go blow it up."

Zeang shook his head. "I can't. I'm not strong enough. Only a Saiyan would have enough power to destroy an asteroid of this magnitude."

"But the Saiyans just left to get a Dragon Ball!" said Arnika. "They'll already be at least one hundred kilometres away."

"I know. But it's the only way!" cried Zeang in frustration.

"We have to try! Follow me!" Kenta turned around and bolted out of the room. Zeang followed close behind, and far behind them came Arnika and Don. When Kenta reached the front yard he took to the air, flying up and over the houses. Zeang cursed, and blasted off as well. Unfortunately, Arnika couldn't fly, so she and Don ran as fast as they could between the streets, following the small dots in the sky that were Kenta and Zeang.

Soon, Kenta touched down, and Zeang followed suit, before looking around at his surroundings. They were standing on the edge of a cliff that fell to the ocean. Behind them was a large stretch of grass, and on the other side, the city that they had just flown out of. Zeang could just sense Arnika and Don on the other side, running pell-mell towards them.

"Look up there," said Kenta quietly. Zeang turned back to him, and found the boy looking up into the blue of the sky. Zeang followed his gaze, and gasped when he caught sight of a small red glow high above them.

"The asteroid," he muttered. Kenta nodded. "It's not far off now. I'd say about an hour, and then it's all over for everyone."

"We can't let that happen. Help me," Kenta said quickly. Then, he lifted an arm, pointed it directly at the glow in the sky, and then yelled out as he charged up.

"Torrent of Flames!"

A red beam of energy erupted out of his palm, and shot straight out, travelling incredibly fast. Kenta felt it impact with the asteroid, but to his shock, it had almost no effect. His beam was being pushed back by the sheer size and power of the meteor.

"Help me!" he shouted. Zeang looked at him doubtfully, before raising his own arm and joining in. Even with their combined efforts, the asteroid still kept falling towards them.

"It's not working," grunted Don, who along with Arnika, had managed to catch up with the other two. "Zeang was right. Only a Saiyan has enough might to destroy that thing."

"But they're gone!" cried Kenta. "We can't alert them in time, we're all going to be crushed in an hour's time!"

"Wrong! We _can _alert them," said Arnika, and pulled a mobile phone out of her pocket. "Have you forgotten already? I gave them a phone before they left. We can just give 'em a call, and they'll come right back."

Kenta grinned in relief. "Arnika, you're a genius."

Arnika smiled at the compliment, and began to dial the number.

**000**

Meanwhile, kilometres away, the three Saiyans were flying over a massive lake. Rhuna was flying slightly ahead, while Blitzo and Makurin were playing a game of Rock-Paper-Scissors in mid-flight. However, the speed at which they were flying made it rather difficult to see.

"OK! Let's go again!" roared Makurin over the wind.

"Right! Rock! Paper! Scissors!" Blitzo yelled back, and held out a closed fist. Seeing that Makurin had a flat hand held out, he quickly extended two fingers, hoping that in the turbulence the other Saiyan wouldn't have seen that he originally chose Rock.

"Cheater!" yelled Makurin. Blitzo cursed under his breath. Just as he was about to retaliate, he felt a vibrating in his pocket. All three Saiyans had changed clothes to look more Havien, and he thought it was some odd feature of the clothes. Then, he remembered the odd machine that Arnika had given Rhuna, who had in turn passed to him.

Blitzo pulled the phone out of his pocket and looked at it blankly. He could hear a faint ringing noise coming from it. On the screen were the words "Arnika Calling".

"Hey, Rhuna! What button did Arnika say to press if this thing started ringing?"

Her reply was caught in the gust and he didn't hear a word of it. Shrugging, he pressed the red button. After all, the button on the Scouter was red. Surely it served the same purpose. To his dismay, the phone stopped ringing, and the vibrating also ceased. The words on the screen changed to "Call Ended".

"_Damn."_

Angrily, he clenched his fist absent-mindedly. Unfortunately, the phone's plastic casing was not up to such a strain, and the mobile shattered in his hands. The remains tumbled into the lake below as he re-opened his hand.

"_I hope that wasn't valuable."_

**000**

Arnika lowered the phone from her ear. "No answer."

"Crap! What are we going to do now?" asked Kenta. He stared at the mobile in Arnika's hands, and was surprised when it exploded. Arnika screamed, and Don and Kenta both started forwards in concern. All of them looked at a small piece of glowing rock on the ground. It had streaked down from the sky and hit the phone. Luckily, it had missed her hands.

"Where did that come from?" questioned Don. Zeang answered.

"Up there."

Slowly, dreading what he was about to see, Don raised his head. The glow in the sky was about three times as big, the asteroid getting ever closer. Tiny bits of the rock were breaking off and tearing through the sky. As they watched, one the size of a mango blasted straight at Don.

"Dad, look out!" screamed Arnika, and to Zeang's great surprise, a ki blast shot out of her hand and annihilated the small rock.

"Arnika, you can use ki blasts?" exclaimed Zeang.

"Only small ones," answered Arnika. "Ferris taught me, but I can only just manage to do them."

Zeang pulled out the only remaining Scouter and put it on. "Incredible!" he said. "Don's is about average for a Havien, only 10, but yours is 300! That's more than Coster's was."

Arnika blushed. "Ferris was - I mean _is _- a good teacher."

"Well, this is all fine and dandy," said Kenta. "But in case you two haven't noticed, that thing is still up there!"

He pointed at the meteor, which had once again doubled in size as it got closer to the surface. Its immense size had blotted out the sun, and the land grew darker. Zeang grimaced, and extended his arms above his head. Then, he left out an enormous yell, and Arnika realised that that the alien was trying to use his telekinetic powers to push the asteroid away from Haven. However, it was simply too large, because, try as he might, Zeang couldn't budge the giant death-bringer from its path. Eventually, his arms fell back to his sides.

"It's no use," he mumbled. "It's all over. Only a Saiyan can do it. We're not strong enough."

Arnika put a hand over her mouth. Don looked stricken and wiped his brow with a white handkerchief. Kenta simply stared at the ground. Suddenly, Zeang looked up.

"Of course! Why didn't I think of it before?" He turned to Kenta. "Quickly. Raise your energy levels as high as they can go. The absolute limit. Don't hold back."

"Why?"

"_Just do it_!" shouted Zeang. There was no time for questions. Zeang began to gather up all of his energy, raising his Power Level to its absolute max of 4000. A white aura flowed around him. Kenta charged up as well, reaching his maximum of 2000. Zeang was impressed.

"Nice. When we first met only yesterday your Power Level was only 1200," he grunted.

"A properly trained fighter can hide power as well as sense it," answered Kenta, struggling to talk while keeping his power up.

Don and Arnika stood near, amazed by this show of strength. The rising energy levels were causing a fierce wind, blowing their hair around.

"Why are they doing this?" asked Arnika.

"I think I know," replied Don. "And if it works, we just might have a chance of surviving this."

**000**

Meanwhile, the Saiyans were still flying towards their goal. Now, Makurin was flying ahead, and Rhuna and Blitzo were shouting back and forth over the wind, discussing the phone call. Rhuna was convinced that something was wrong back at the house, and was annoyed with Blitzo for breaking the phone. On the other hand, Blitzo was defending himself by saying that there couldn't have been a problem so soon, and that Arnika must have just been trying to tell them something that they forgot. Whatever it was, it could wait, he said.

Up ahead, Makurin pulled out of flight, hovering in mid-air. Blitzo and Rhuna flew right past him, before doubling back.

"What's up?" asked Rhuna.

"Do you feel that?" asked Makurin. He looked incredibly worried.

"Feel what?" asked Blitzo.

"That massive Power Level. It's Zeang and Kenta. They've both charged up to their limits."

There was a silence. Then Makurin spoke. "I'm going back."

"What? Why?" asked Blitzo and Rhuna at the same time.

"Something's up. Zeang's trying to tell me something. Now that the phone's broken, he must have raised his power in the hope that I'd sense it. You two go on ahead and get the Ball."

Blitzo started to protest, but Rhuna cut in. "He's right," she said Blitzo. Reluctantly, he nodded.

Makurin turned and blasted off back the way they came. Rhuna took off towards the Dragon Ball, and after a moment, Blitzo followed.

**000**

Kenta gasped. "It worked! Makurin's energy signature is coming back. I hope he gets here in time."

The asteroid was getting ominously close. There was little over half an hour remaining before it impacted.

"But the question is, will he be able to destroy the damned thing?" asked Don.

Zeang smiled wryly. "If there is one thing you should never forget, it is to _never _underestimate a Saiyan."

Fifteen minutes later, Makurin's energy level had very nearly arrived. Arnika looked up and screamed. A massive chunk of rock was flying straight for them, travelling to fast to jump out of the way. Zeang raised his arms to halt the rock with his mind, but before he could, it was vaporised. Floating in the air behind it was Makurin, his arm outstretched. Zeang flew up to him.

"Makurin, thank the Kai's you're here! The asteroid's getting closer, there's only minutes left! You've got to stop it."

"Woah, woah, slow down! What asteroid?"

Zeang stared at him, his mouth half-open. Slowly, he pointed over Makurin's shoulder to the massive glow in the sky.

"_That_ asteroid."

Makurin turned, and saw the meteor.

"Oh. _That_ asteroid."

But as he looked closer at it, Zeang saw him wince slightly. Was this even beyond a Saiyans' abilities to stop?

"I'll do my best," muttered Makurin. He descended to the ground and charged up, before raising a hand and sending a massive energy beam up at the asteroid. It collided with the rock, creating a massive boom. However, it wasn't strong enough to stop the asteroid. Makurin gritted his teeth, and poured even more energy into the attack.

"Damn you, you stupid rock!" he shouted, frustrated. Quickly, he raised his other arm and discharged a beam from both hands. They still had no effect, only shooting straight through the meteor, but not destroying it.

Makurin's energy rose higher and higher as he got angrier at his own failure. Zeang's Scouter was going crazy.

"11,000...11,500...12,000!" he gasped.

"Why's he so angry?" gasped Arnika.

"Because he's failing to destroy it. That's enough to make any Saiyan angry at themselves, but Makurin always got particularly mad when he failed."

Finally, Makurin ceased the beams and raised a fist.

"That's it! You wanna do this the hard way, you lump of crap? FINE, HAVE IT YOUR WAY!"

He turned to the others. "Stand back!"

No one even thought about disobeying for even a second. Makurin's face was filled with rage. Then, he bent over slightly and raised his Power Level even higher. The other four backed away so fast that they almost tripped over.

"PREPARE TO BEAR WITNESS TO THE GRENADIER SHOCKWAVE!"

"That's impossible!" gasped Zeang. "There's no way that Makurin could know that technique!"

"What is it?" asked Kenta. Whatever it was, it seemed powerful.

Zeang was astonished at Makurin. "The Grenadier Shockwave is an incredibly destructive technique developed by Makurin's father, Tokoran, years ago. It was so powerful that it almost destroyed him when he used it. To stop people from injuring themselves and endangering others, the King of all Saiyans, Vegeta, banned it from ever being used. But I guess Tokoran taught it to Makurin, though."

"That's right! I've never actually used it before, but I know the theory," growled Makurin, and suddenly he screamed as he charged up even more.

"It's coming," gasped Zeang, as Makurin's Power Level reached 15,000, equal to Blitzo's when he killed Cuo. Above, the asteroid entered Haven's atmosphere. It would impact within five minutes.

Makurin's hands glowed, and he thrust them into the air. To Kenta's immense surprise, hundreds of small, white ki blasts erupted out of the young Saiyan's hands. The blasts shot up into the air, and swarmed all over the asteroid. Instead of exploding on the surface of the giant meteor, they embedded themselves into the rock, sticking there. Makurin kept up a constant stream of ki, and within a minute, incredibly, the entire asteroid was shining bright white from the ki covering it. But it was still heading straight for the ground. The ki wasn't stopping it at all.

Makurin severed the flow of ki blasts, exhausted. He was sweating like mad, and he had exhausted all of his power...but there was still one more thing left to do.

Arnika moaned quietly. "It didn't work," she whispered. Zeang turned to her slowly.

_If there is one thing you should never forget, it is to never underestimate a Saiyan._

"Yes," said the alien. "It did."

Arnika looked at him in confusion, then slowly turned her head to look at Makurin, and gasped. He was charging up again. With what seemed like great effort, the Saiyan raised his arms above his head, palms facing each other.

"_Everybody down!"_ roared Zeang, and forced everybody to the ground with his telekinesis.

"GRENADIER SHOCKWAVE!" bellowed Makurin.

"Brace yourselves!" Zeang shouted.

Don, Arnika and Kenta all grabbed onto a rock sticking out the ground. Zeang himself locked his body into the ground with his powers.

Meanwhile, Makurin poured all of his power into hands, and then, with a great war cry, clapped his them together. Arnika screamed as a massive shockwave erupted from his hands in all directions, blowing everybody backwards. She felt her hands slipping from the rock, and then she let go completely, screaming once again as she was blasted backwards by the shockwave. As she flew past Kenta, he grabbed her wrist. She held on tight, until the shockwave passed and they fell to the ground. Kenta jumped up just in time to see the shockwave reach the ki blast covered asteroid.

Every single one of the ki blasts exploded. The Haviens all stuffed their fingers in their ears as an impossibly loud boom reached their ears. The asteroid was completely destroyed as it was repeatedly bombarded by the small explosion. The explosions all blew off little bits of the meteor, until there was nothing left. They were saved. The asteroid was gone.

Makurin grinned briefly, and then crumbled to the ground.

**000**

Makurin opened his eyes, to find himself in a bed. Looking around, he recognised it as the room he was bunking in at Don's house. Standing up, he walked out of the room, down the hallway and into Arnika's workshop, where all of the others were. Rhuna turned as he walked in.

"Makurin!" she shrieked, and ran over to him, throwing her arms around him. "Thank God you're OK. That Grenadier Shockwave took everything out of you. You've been out cold for four days."

"Four days? I guess that's what I get for trying out such a dangerous attack."

"Well, we're lucky that you did. Otherwise, we'd all be dead right now," said Zeang.

"So, what did I miss?"

"Well, we got the Dragon Ball," said Blitzo, picking it up off a workbench and showing it to Makurin. It had one star on it.

"Awesome. So, when are we going to get the next one?" asked Makurin.

The others all exchanged looks. "What?" asked Makurin.

"Well, when you destroyed the asteroid, bits of it were blown all over the planet. It was a pretty forceful blast. Anyway, we track the Dragon Balls by using the radar to find electromagnetic pulses given off by them. Unfortunately, the meteor contained a lot of electromagnetically charged steel, and now the Dragon Radar's all glitched up, because it's getting signals from all the pieces. It's going to take at least four weeks to re-calibrate the radar to only pick up the Dragon Balls, and not the other bits of metal," said Don.

"Bummer. So, what are we going to do for the next month, then, while we wait?" asked Makurin.

Blitzo and Rhuna grinned at each other, before Blitzo answered. "We can train."

**000**

I hope you all enjoyed that; it's taken me about four hours to write. I've been planning this chapter for ages, but it's taken a while to get going with it. While it might not have turned out exactly the way I planned, I'm still pretty happy with it.

Well, I should update either this or Aura Adventure by Monday, Tuesday at the latest, so stay tuned, for the next episode of Dragon Ball X...or Aura Adventure, it depends.


	9. Top Notch Training

**Dragon Ball X**

Hi guys. Wassup? I'm back with another chapter of DBX. I know that I haven't updated Aura Adventure much, I'll get around to that tomorrow.

Oh, yes, I almost forgot. Littlmiget123 asked me in a review how Makurin's Father could have killed himself just using the Grenadier Shockwave, and the answer is that the Grenadier Shockwave takes up so much energy from the user's body that they could easily die from sheer exhaustion. Even Makurin was out for _four days_ after using it.

Last time, Makurin managed to destroy the asteroid with his most powerful attack, the Grenadier Shockwave. When he woke up four days later, he was informed that the Dragon Radar was screwed up, and that it would be at least a month until it was fixed again. The Saiyans, Zeang and Kenta decided to use their time to train.

**000**

Blitzo stood perfectly still, staring at Makurin, who looked back. Blitzo averted his gaze to look at Rhuna, who was also frozen. Together they formed a triangle, each of them making up a corner.

They were in a massive room, with an orange floor and white walls. Through a window, Zeang and Kenta watched. On the wall was a screen, showing a single figure.

**50G**

The G stood for Gravity. The three warriors were in a gravity chamber that Don and Zeang had built. The day after Makurin had woken up, Zeang had explained the general concept of gravity chambers to Don, who had immediately hired several technicians and builders to convert an unused training room into the marvel that Zeang had described. Within a week it was finished, and the Saiyans had begun training right away. The gravity room that had been crafted was of much better quality than any gravity chamber ever created by the Saiyans, which couldn't go over 2x Planet Vegeta's gravity. The chamber made by Don could go up to 200x Haven's gravity, roughly equal to 20x Vegeta's gravity.

Within two weeks, with the help of higher gravity, the fighters had increased their strength massively. All three Saiyans now had a Power Level of 16,000, Zeang had risen to 7,000, and Kenta had astounded all of them by becoming even stronger than Zeang, at 8,000.

While Kenta had been trained extremely well by Ferris, his tutelage was nothing compared to that of the Saiyans. Their ancient fighting species had discovered secrets about Martial Arts that were unknown to any other race. And so Kenta had improved rapidly.

At first, he had struggled to even stand up in the gravity room when it was set to only 10G – ten times Havien's gravity. But soon, he had built up a resistance to the added weight, and it made him stronger. Amazingly, the young boy had raised the gravity higher and higher, until he was able to fight normally under 30G. Unfortunately, it wasn't high enough for the Saiyans to get a good work-out under, so Kenta trained with Zeang, or with the Saiyans when they were warming up.

Blitzo was still staring at Makurin. And then it happened. Moving almost too fast to see, Makurin took off from the floor, shooting straight at Blitzo, who raised an arm and blocked the punch, and then delivered one of his own. Before it could connect though, it was intercepted by Rhuna, who had joined the fray with gusto. Grabbing Blitzo's arm, she wrenched him out of the way, and Makurin saw his chance, aiming a kick at her back. She tried to dodge, but the high gravity slowed her down, and Makurin's kick connected.

Rhuna was knocked across the room, where she hit the wall. Quickly, the Saiyan girl bounded back up and flew back to Makurin, preparing a fist to punch him in the face with. Just before she reached him, though, Blitzo arrived first, sneaking up behind Makurin, who was focusing on Rhuna, and cracking him around the back of the head. Makurin tumbled forwards, and Rhuna's punch sailed high over his head, narrowly missing Blitzo by accident.

Rhuna did a somersault to recover from her miss, and was back on her feet in a second, just in time to block several punches from Blitzo, before jumping right over his head as he kicked out. To her horror, when she landed, Makurin was standing right in front of her, and quickly knocked the wind out of her with a savage kick to the stomach. She fell to the side, and grinned inside as Blitzo kicked backwards, missing her, and hitting Makurin.

Makurin retaliated by trying to punch Blitzo. He swayed to the side, and the punch missed, but the second one didn't, and Blitzo folded over in pain.

"Ooh," he grunted. "That smarts."

Makurin grinned. "Glad to know that my work is appreciated."

Suddenly, his vision flashed red as Rhuna connected her foot with the side of his head. He spun stupidly, and crumpled to the ground, groaning. Blitzo straightened up.

"Now it's just you and me," he said to Rhuna.

"Soon to be just me."

"I don't think so!"

He ran at her, and for half a minute both fighters received and delivered several blows, each trying to anticipate and block the other's attacks. Both were concentrating so hard that they didn't notice Makurin slowly crawling to his knees. Suddenly, he held himself up with one hand and spun, swinging his legs around and sweeping_ their _legs out from under them. Blitzo and Rhuna went crashing to the ground, and Makurin jumped up.

"Hah! Always be aware of your surroundings," he said triumphantly, as the others two slowly stood back up. Injuries were beginning to affect all three combatants, and the gravity didn't help. However, the more injured they were the stronger they got, due to their Saiyan abilities.

Outside the room, Zeang smirked as he watched the Saiyan's through the window. "Let's have a little fun," he said, and turned a knob on a control panel in front of him. Inside the room, the gravity reading changed from 50G to 60G.

"Oh no," said Blitzo wearily, and tried to get a head start, lashing out at Makurin with his left hand, and Rhuna with his right. Both dodged just in time, and the increased weight made Blitzo stumble forwards. Rhuna raised an arm and thumped him on the back, before attacking Makurin. He fell back under a few hits, but dodged a few others, and then pulled back his fist to unleash his own attack. Rhuna also threw one last punch, and they connected at the same time, on each other's cheeks. The impact spun Rhuna around in a 180 turn, and Makurin also was spun to face his rear.

Blitzo was just climbing to feet, and took his chance when Rhuna and Makurin knocked the other around with their simultaneous punches. Dashing forwards, he reached out, and grabbed each of their tails. Both of the other Saiyans lost their strength instantly.

"YES! I win!"

"Damn you, Blitzo," grunted Makurin. "Let go, that's cheating."

"How exactly is it cheating? In a real fight, neither of us would hesitate to exploit each other's weaknesses."

"Yeah, but you don't have a tail, it's not fair. We both have more weaknesses than you," countered Makurin.

"Too bad. You said yourself that you'd rather have a tail than not."

"I never said that! I said that you lost your greatest strength, I never said that I'd rather not have a tail."

"Then cut yours off, if it's such a burden," snapped Blitzo.

"Hell no! No Saiyan would willingly cut off their tail."

"Oh, would the two of you please _shut up!" _growled Rhuna. "You're giving me a headache!"

"Fine," said Makurin. "Hey, Zeang! Turn the gravity off!"

Outside, Zeang turned the knob the other way as far as it would go, down to 1G. The Saiyans sighed in relief as the massive weight of their own hair was lifted.

"That's better," said Makurin, rubbing his neck. "That gravity is giving me aches."

"Nah, that's just the repeated pummellings I'm giving you," smirked Blitzo, and Makurin shoved a fist in front of his face.

"You wanna fight?"

"I think that we just did, and who won? Oh, that's right! ME!" laughed Blitzo. His wide grin soon changed to an expression of pain as Rhuna thumped both him and Makurin on the back of their heads.

"What did I just say, Blitzo? SHUT UP!"

"And besides, Blitzo, you didn't win, you cheated."

Together they exited the room, bickering amongst themselves, and headed off towards the healing tanks that Zeang had installed. Using a fusion of Saiyan technology and Don's own design's, the Havien whiz had created a healing tank far more advanced than the ones back home. These new tanks used a chemical only found on Haven, which had marvellous healing properties. Rather than hours like the old models, they could heal from near-dead to fully functional in thirty minutes. This was a major factor in the Saiyan's and Kenta's increased Power Levels.

**000**

Blitzo climbed out of his tank twenty minutes, fully refreshed. Preparing to go back into the gravity chamber and do some private training on his own, he noticed Kenta and Arnika opening the front door.

"Where are you two going?"

"I'm going down to the jewellery shop to order a new necklace. I wanna get one custom-made, and there's only one shop that'll do it," said Arnika. "It's in town, and has the best jewellery in the country.

"Wouldn't that cost a lot of money?"

"Look around you, and then tell me we're poor," laughed Arnika, and shut the door.

Outside, Kenta pulled an M-Cube out of his pocket, and pressed the button, forming a car. The two siblings jumped inside, and started up the engine, and left. Behind them, hovering high in the air, a figure watched them drive away. He had green skin, and was wearing white robes that had large shoulder pads. Two antennae were on his head, and he had pointy ears.

"_I'll have to keep an eye on that one," _he thought to himself. "_And two eyes on his friends."_

**000**

Arnika loved the shopping mall, much like most girls her age. But rather than drift around from shop to shop dragging Kenta behind her, like she wanted to and usually did, she had a job to do, and headed straight for the jewellers: Diamond Beauty.

As per her usual routine, when she entered Diamond Beauty, Arnika did a round of gasps and dashed around the shop, spending about ten seconds staring at each individual ring or gem, before moving about an inch to her right and looking at the next one. This continued for about five minutes, before Kenta spoke up.

"Can we just order this thing and get outa here? It's not really my bag to be spending all day in _Diamond Beauty."_

"Oh, all right!" she snapped, and stepped up to the front desk, where the shop assistant was doing a crossword in the newspaper.

"Oh, hello. How can I help you?" she asked politely, putting her pen down.

"I'd like to make a custom order."

"Oh, of course. Hold on just one moment, I'll get the manager, he handles all such business."

The assistant stood up from her chair, and walked through a door behind the counter, into a back office.

"Nice service in here, isn't it?" Arnika asked Kenta, who was daydreaming about fighting.

"Wha-? Oh yeah, yeah, good service," he said, not really paying attention. Arnika rolled her eyes just as a man in his thirties walked out of the office.

"Hello, my name is Bert, would you mind coming into the back so that I take down the details of your purchase, please?"

Arnika walked enthusiastically into the back room, Kenta trailing along behind looking bored. There was only one chair inside the room, so he lent against the back room while Bert listened to Arnika rant on about every minor detail of her new necklace. Bert seemed interested about it, and even went into a story about another customer, who had bought a ring that had cost over $100,000. Arnika seemed genuinely interested, while Kenta wasn't really listening, nodding at inappropriate moments and saying things like "yeah", and "really?" while Bert was half-way through a sentence.

Suddenly, there was a loud racket from outside in the main shop, and the sound of a roller door being rolled closed. Bert stood up sharply.

"Excuse me," he said politely. "I'll be back in a moment."

"I wonder what that was about," said Kenta, seeming interested for the first time.

"I dunno, but it doesn't sound good."

"Maybe the store's being robbed," joked Kenta.

Perhaps by coincidence, at that moment Bert's voice said loudly "Please, sir, put the gun down."

Kenta and Arnika looked at each other. "I hate it when I'm right. Well, I suppose we'd better go help them, then."

He turned and walked out of the room, Arnika close behind. As they walked into the main shop, they saw two men with masks on, both holding guns and bags. By the looks of it, they had closed the giant roller door behind them, blocking off the view from the rest of the mall, so that no one would notice the shop being robbed, and so that nobody could escape. As Kenta walked into the room, the first man turned his gun on him.

"Quick, get back into the office," called Bert. His hands were on his head, and he was standing behind the counter next to the assistant. "Please, don't hurt them!" he pleaded to the two robbers. "Take whatever you want, but I will not let my customers come to harm."

Kenta felt a rush of gratitude towards the manager, but stepped forwards anyway. "Thanks Bert, but we'll be fine," he said confidently, stepping in between the robbers and Bert, leaning back onto the counter. Arnika also moved to stand next to him. "Now, I suggest that you two turn around now and leave, or I might resort to violence."

The man pointing the gun and him laughed. "Look, kid, I've killed four people with this gun. The cops have been trying to catch me, the great Max Scott, for ages. I wouldn't hesitate to shoot you; do you really wanna mess with me?"

Kenta smirked. "Actually, I was about to ask you the same question."

"That's it! Sorry, but you've really been getting on my nerves," Max snarled, and he pulled the trigger. The bullet flew straight at Kenta, and Max heard the crack as it went through the kid's head and hit the wall behind. Slowly, his face turned to surprise when he saw that Kenta showed no signs of dying...and that there was no hole in his head. Kenta tutted, and folded his arms in front of his chest.

"Guns. So slow and unreliable. The only weapons a guy can rely on these days are his own fists."

"But...how did you survive? That bullet hit the wall directly behind you, how did it not hit you on the way?"

"One word: Speed."

Max gaped. Was this kid trying to tell him that he had _dodged _the bullet? That's insane! Quickly, he raised the gun again.

"Kill him," he said to the other robber, and they both opened fire on the young boy. Each bullet was fired with deadly accuracy, and yet not one of them hit. Kenta barely seemed to be moving, just twitching, but Arnika knew that he was snapping his head from side to side, dodging each projectile that was sent his way. At that moment, she realised how much effect the Saiyan's training had had on him. His speed was enormous, faster than she had ever seen a Havien move. Suddenly the gunfire ended.

"Go on," Kenta said. "Take another shot! I _promise _that I'll stay still this time."

Max was furious, and he gladly raised his gun and fired once more. Bert let out a small gasp as the finger twitched on the trigger, but Kenta was smiling tauntingly, his arms still folded. As the warrior watched, the bullet flew out of the chamber, felt it impact on his forehead, and bounce off. Kenta bent his head forwards, looking at the small piece of lead on the ground. He looked back up at Max and raised an eyebrow.

"Is that _really_ the best that you can do?"

Max had never been so angry, and yet so scared. Determined to cause some sort of harm to this annoying brat of a kid, he realised the best way to hurt him was emotionally. And he knew the best way to do it.

"I might not be able to kill you, but I can't say the same for your pretty little lady!" he yelled angrily, raising his gun, and firing it at Arnika. As the muzzle flashed, Kenta's eyes flashed with rage.

Max laughed cruelly, as the bullet sped on its way, but his laugh turned to a whine of surprise as Arnika stood standing, Kenta's arm held out in front of her, fist clenched. He had caught the bullet before it had hit her. Max's mouth hung open in shock as Kenta slowly opened his hand, and the bullet fell out, crushed. Kenta turned his eyes on the villain, and walked slowly towards him, his face venomous.

"I honestly don't care if you try and kill me," he said, voice dripping with menace. "But nobody, and I mean _nobody_, will get away with hurting my sister!"

Max whimpered in fear, and pointed the gun at Kenta, who reached out and crushed the barrel in an iron fist. Max backed up quickly and hit the roller door. Suddenly he realised, as Kenta drew closer, that closing it to keep people out had also prevented him from escaping this seemingly invincible opponent...

**000**

Judy Handson was very excited about the new piece of jewellery that she had ordered. Unfortunately for her, as she neared the door of Diamond Beauty, she saw that the roller door was closed. Judy was confused. It was the middle of the day, and the sign in the window said that it was open until six tonight.

As she drew nearer to the door, she saw it rattle slightly as something rustled up against it. Suddenly, Judy screamed as a massive shape exploded right through the metal door, and flew about 15 metres, where it hit a wall, making a sickening crack. Judy almost went into shock as she saw that it was a man. She peeked through the human shaped hole in the door and saw a young boy with his arms outstretched, as if he had just thrown the man. Quickly, she hurried off before something else crazy happened.

**000**

Inside, the other robber shouted in fear as Kenta looked at him.

"Please, don't hurt me!" he whined. "I didn't want to come, he made me! Besides, I wasn't the one that tried to kill your sister, please let me go!"

Kenta hadn't make a move towards him, but the man was almost going insane with fear, and had peed his pants.

Kenta jerked his head at the door. "Get out of here," he said. "Tell your friend when he wakes up in a few months time that if he tries a stunt like that again, I really _will _kill him."

The second robber nodded quickly, and bolted out the hole in the door. Kenta turned to Arnika, who was shaking a little, not because she had almost been shot, but by Kenta's fierce reaction to it.

"Are you OK?" he asked gently, pulling her into a hug.

"I-I'm fine," she said. "Oh, Kenta, that was so scary, please don't go crazy like that again."

"I'll try," he said. "I couldn't help it, you could have died."

"No, I wouldn't have," she said. Kenta looked at her strangely, and she smiled slightly. "I know that no matter what happened, you would have protected me, big bro."

Kenta smiled in relief, and hugged her again. "Thanks, sis. Come on, let's go."

They turned, and walked to the door. Just before they climbed out the hole, Kenta snapped his fingers in annoyance, and turned back to the counter, where Bert was leaning against the wall, knees shaking in disbelief at Kenta's strength. The assistant had fainted onto the floor. Kenta pulled a notepad and pen out of his pocket and scribbled something on it, before tearing the page out.

"Here," he said, passing the page to Bert. "I'm sure my Dad will be happy to pay for the damages to your store that I caused."

"D-Don't worry about it," stuttered Bert. "You s-saved my shop, after a-all."

"Oh please, I insist!" said Kenta, waving a hand. "Bye now!"

He turned and walked back to Arnika, and together they climbed out the hole. On the other side, Kenta cursed as several heads turned from where they were crowded around Max's deeply unconscious body, embedded in the wall, to stare at the two teenagers.

"Don't worry, I'll get us out of here," said Arnika casually. She seemed to have recovered from her shock. "I always carry around diversion money." Quickly, the young girl reached into her handbag and pulled out several handfuls of hundred dollar bills. Tossing them high into the air, she called out at the top of her voice.

"Free money, come and get it while it's hot!"

Most people abandoned Max's body to greedily snatch up the notes floating in the air. The two siblings strolled unnoticed to the exit as behind them complete chaos erupted over the money.

"Works every time," smirked Arnika.

**000**

Far away, on the other side of Haven, it was dark, in the middle of the night. Slowly, a dark figure flew down on a small island, and strode across the rocks, towards the centre of the island, where an ancient stone statue of a man stood. In one hand, the statue held a ball of flame, and in the other a small yellow-orange ball, with four stars in it. The figure reached out and prised the orange ball from the statue's grip.

"At last," said a gravelly voice. "One down, six more to go."

An evil laugh echoed over the ocean.

**000**

Taa-daa!

Don't worry, Max survived his trip through the roller door, and left hospital several months later after all four of his broken limbs and his collar bone had healed, as well as his fractured skull. Kenta really pounded into him, didn't he? I wanted to showcase his fighting skills a bit more.

Anyway, I'll update Aura Adventure sometime soon, probably tomorrow or the next day. Don't forget to leave plenty of reviews for this story, as well as AA and Digimon (if you like AA or Digimon).

Sayonara!


	10. Tomb Raiders

**Dragon Ball X**

Hey guys! I know I haven't updated for about a week, but I finally figured out the exact plan of this entire story, so I thought I'd do a chapter now.

Oh yeah, Gravity Question, your review made me laugh. Yeah, that was a mistake on my part. I've gone back and fixed that error. Thanks for pointing that out, by the way.

**000**

"Nearly there..." muttered Arnika, as she typed the last few commands into the program on her computer. The girl was sitting in her lab at the base computer of the Large Dragon Radar, and standing behind her were the Saiyans, her brother, her father, and Zeang, all watching her intently. Hoping for the best, Arnika put her tongue between her teeth, and pressed Enter. The screen blinked, and then the Large Dragon Radar flickered to life, showing the map of the world. On it were seven flashing dots.

"Yes!" cried Arnika. "I've got it!"

"Good work, sweetie," said Don, impressed.

"You did extremely well, Arnika," Zeang complimented.

"Yeah. Nice job, Arn," said Kenta, grinning. "You've recalibrated the Radar!"

"Now we can search for the Dragon Balls again, right?" asked Makurin.

Arnika nodded. "Uh-huh."

"Great," Makurin answered. "So, when do we start?"

"Hang on," said Zeang, who was inspecting the Radar. "Look at this." He pointed at three dots that were practically right on top of each other. "These are the Dragon Balls that we have; the Three-Star, the Seven-Star, and the One-Star Balls." Then he pointed at two other dots that were _also _right next to each other, on the other side of the world. "Look at those two. The Four-Star and the Two-Star. They shouldn't be that close together. That can mean only one thing."

Rhuna voiced his thoughts. "Someone else is collecting the Dragon Balls."

Zeang nodded. "Exactly."

The room went quiet. Finally, Kenta broke the silence. "So, what do we do?"

"I don't know," confessed Zeang. "We could keep collecting the balls, and then buy the last two from this person after we've got the others."

"That's an option," said Don. "We could contact them and make a deal? Maybe it would be better if we had all of the others first, before we try that, though. If we had all of the Balls except those two, they might be more inclined to give them to us than if we just had the three that we have now."

"I agree," said Blitzo. "What say we go out right now and get a Ball quickly before dinner?"

"Yep," said Makurin. "Let's go now."

"Agreed," said Zeang. He turned to the Radar again and pointed randomly at one of the two remaining Balls. "Zoom us in on that one, Arnika."

She obliged, and within seconds they were looking at the location of the Dragon Ball he was pointing at.

"Oh, wow!" exclaimed Arnika. "It's in a Slavo tomb!"

"A _what_?" asked Rhuna.

"Millennia ago, on Haven, there was an ancient civilisation called Slavo. The Slavoans were powerful; they had a large army, and were capable warriors," explained Don. "They used to bury their kings in tombs that stretched deep underground, and were full of lethal traps...well, lethal to Haviens anyway...well, normal Haviens. They wouldn't have much effect on Kenta here, or Ferris. Arnika loves researching Slavo tombs; they're full of historical stuff."

"Sounds like fun," said Blitzo. "We'll have a great time breaking in and stealing the Dragon Ball. Let's go. Coming, Kenta? Zeang?"

"Of course," said Kenta. Zeang also nodded his head.

"I'm coming too," announced Arnika.

Kenta shook his head. "No way, sis. It's too dangerous."

"So was that gunman at Diamond Beauty last week. You protected me then, and this time we also have the Saiyans and Zeang for backup. I'm sure that between the five of you, I'll be safe," said Arnika fiercely. Kenta knew that she wouldn't change her mind, and grudgingly nodded. "Well, seeing as she's going, what about you, Dad?"

"Oh no, I'm too old to be running around in tombs," said Don. "Besides, I have business to attend to. I'll see all of you later. And make sure that she doesn't get hurt," he added to Kenta.

"Don't worry, we'll take care of her," said Zeang. Arnika rolled her eyes.

"I don't _need _protection. I'll be perfectly fine, as long as I watch my step."

"Well, alright then. Bye, now!"

Don walked out of the laboratory, down the hall into his office. Meanwhile, Arnika grabbed the Small Radar, and the group left the house and walked out of the city. When they were out of sight of the city, Arnika climbed onto Kenta's back, and they all took to the sky.

**000**

A fierce wind blew as the six of them landed, three hours later. They were in a desert, near some old ruins of an old stone city. Before them was a deep valley, filled with entrances to tombs.

Arnika led the way into the valley, using the Radar as a sort of compass. Soon, she had located the entrance to the tomb that the Dragon Ball was in. It was blocked by a heavy stone door more than a metre thick. On the door was written some strange text, carved into the stone thousands of years ago.

"Alright, I found it," Arnika said. "Now, let's look at this inscription."

The rest of them waited while she translated the text. Luckily, she had always been fascinated by the Slavoans, and had therefore committed their alphabet to memory.

"Ok. I think it says: 'Only those who can prove their worth may enter the sacred tomb of Raj-Cof. If you can break the seal to the tomb, you may enter.' But how do we break the seal? This door is closed shut."

"Allow me," said Rhuna, stepping forwards and raising her hand. Arnika realised what she was about to do at the last second and dived backwards as Rhuna unleashed an energy beam, hitting the door directly in the centre. Arnika screamed as there was a massive explosion, and a cloud of dust erupted from the door, covering all of them in its smothering blanket. Slowly, the dust cleared, leaving a gaping hole in the door.

"Apparently we're worthy to enter," said Blitzo, and stepped into the hole. The others followed close behind, Arnika at the rear, who was looking slightly shaken up. She seemed a bit overwhelmed by the force in which Rhuna had used to gain entrance to a sacred tomb.

Inside the tomb was utter darkness. However, as they journeyed a bit further in, lamps on the walls burst into flame, illuminating the way ahead. The group saw that they were in a long tunnel.

"Nifty," said Makurin, as they penetrated the tomb even further."Looks like the Slavoans were pretty clever."

"Whoops," said Blitzo, as he stumbled over a plank of wood poking from the ground. It fell out of the socket that it had been placed in. Suddenly a loud rumble echoed throughout the tunnel that they were in. Up ahead, they ceiling caved in and a massive boulder fell through the hole, and began to roll towards them. It took up the entire tunnel.

"Watch out!" screamed Arnika, but no one else was worried. Kenta strode forwards towards the giant rock careering towards him and launched an explosive kick, shattering the boulder into hundreds of pieces. Arnika gaped, and Kenta smirked at her shocked face.

"What a weak trap," he said.

Arnika shook her head at her brother's own strength and they continued on. As the tunnel got deeper, the lamps grew fewer, and the darkness became more pronounced. Eventually, though, the tunnel grew wider, and the lamps increased in number again. Finally, they turned a corner and saw that the rock walls of the path had turned into polished stone. Halfway into the room was another stone door, blocking the way. Like the first one, it also had Slavoan text carved on it.

"There's the entrance to the tomb," said Arnika. "Be careful. There will be traps everywhere from now on."

"Wait a minute," said Rhuna, confused. "If we're not in the tomb yet, then where are we? You mean we're in some random tunnel?"

"Not really," said Zeang, who, like Arnika, was fascinated by tombs like this and knew a lot about them. "Tombs often have a sort of antechamber to try and lure people away. That giant rock that Kenta smashed would have crushed any normal person. Most people wouldn't even make it this far. Through there is probably a maze of tunnels, before we get to the inner chamber."

"Cool," said Blitzo. "Well, in we go then!"

He raised a hand and obliterated the door blocking their way. As soon as they stepped through the door, another one fell shut behind them, trapping them in the crypt. Not that any of them cared. It would be all too easy to blast their way out when they got the Dragon Ball.

"Onwards," announced Zeang, and the group began to make their way into the tomb of Raj-Cof. There were now lamps everywhere on the walls, and the path was brightly lit. The walls, the floor and the ceiling were all made of the same shiny rock, glowing yellow from the flames. Against the sides of the tunnel were statues of people made out of solid gold.

Kenta whistled. "We should break into tombs more often; this stuff would be worth a fortune."

Arnika shook her head. "There's no way I'm stealing any of this. All of the artefacts are probably cursed or something. No, the only thing we should take is the Dragon Ball."

"Fine," said Kenta shortly. "Shame, though."

Finally, they reached a section of the path where the statues of people ended, and were replaced by statues of animals, namely snakes and what looked like Minotaurs, holding various weapons such as swords and spears.

"This place is creepy," said Blitzo. "Those statues look pretty real if you ask me."

"Oh, there's nothing to worry about," said Zeang, and no sooner had the words come out of his mouth when one of the statues of a Minotaur moved suddenly, and swung the axe it was holding at Zeang's head. Zeang twitched his eyes and the Minotaur stopped dead, but not before one of the snake sculptures had also come to life and lunged at him. Zeang caught it in mid-air using his telekinesis and wrapped it around the frozen Minotaur's throat, all without touching either of them. The two statues fell to the hard ground and shattered.

"That was weird," Zeang said casually, as if he had just seen something mildly interesting, instead of being attacked by unnatural beings. "I wasn't expecting that."

"O-KAAAY, that was creepy," remarked Kenta. "Can someone please explain to me what just happened?"

"I don't know," said Arnika. "But my guess is that those statues were bewitched thousands of years ago to stop intruders."

"Even though that's not possible," muttered Kenta under his breath.

"Anyway," said Rhuna. "Shall we carry on?"

But before they could, there was a loud clanking noise, and they back to the direction from which they had come to see every statue they had passed coming to life. Most of the humans were armed with swords and other weapons, and the Minotaurs were of course armed. As one, they turned and began to march towards the group.

"This might not end well," said Kenta nervously. "Arnika, get behind us."

She obliged gladly, and watched as Makurin took a step forwards.

"My turn," he said. "I'll handle this."

Two of the Minotaurs lurched at him. He intercepted them, grabbing them and knocking their heads together. The two gold beasts crumbled to the ground. Despite the fact that they were inanimate, they seemed to be able to be knocked unconscious. Makurin walked right into the midst of the stautes and began to effortlessly dispatch all of the attackers. When about half of the statues were lying on the floor, completely out of it, Rhuna waded in, grabbing Makurin's shoulder and pulling him backwards.

"You've done enough. Leave some of the fun for the rest of us."

She ran forwards before Makurin could react and kicked one of the statues so hard that its head cracked right off, flying across the tunnel and hitting another, knocking ithat one out as well.

One of the archers up the back nocked an arrow into his bow, pulled back and fired. Rhuna twisted to the side, stuck out her neck, and caught the arrow in her teeth as it went by. Blitzo folded his arms.

"Show-off," he grunted. "Let me show you how it's done."

Rhuna stepped back to the group and Blitzo walked forwards, presenting himself to the remaining statues, who greeted him by savagely running forwards swinging their weapons wildly. Blitzo held his arms out to the sides of his waist. Two yellow orbs formed in his palms, and he bought his hands together in front of his chest, where the orbs converged into one large one.

"Kensei-Gan!" he bellowed, and thrust his arms out in front of him. The orb turned into a beam, which cannoned down the tunnel, obliterating every single statue that stood standing, as well as the dead ones on the floor. Arnika's hair stood on end and was blown around from the force, and she could feel the heat from where she was standing.

Blitzo ended the beam, leaving nothing but a pile of singed rocks and melted gold in front of him. Grinning, he turned back to the others.

"Who doesn't like a good light show, eh? Well, let's get going."

They continued on downwards into the tomb. Once again, the lamps on the wall grew fewer, and the path split into several forks.

"Which one do we go down?" asked Makurin.

"Simple," replied Zeang. "Arnika, check the direction that the Dragon Ball is in."

Arnika pulled out the Small Radar from her pocket and inspected it. Then she looked up and pointed down one of the forks.

"That way," she said. "The others probably just lead to treasure chambers, but we want the Inner Chamber. If the Dragon Ball was anywhere in this tomb, that would be where it was."

After about ten more minutes of walking, disarming several more small traps involving arrows, another boulder, and a pit of bright green acid, they reached a cavern. To call it small would be the understatement of the century. The cavern was probably about a kilometre squared. The walls were perfectly straight, and had a lamp about every five metres. The ceiling was so high that it couldn't be seen, and there were several pillars and statues everywhere. A marble path led from the mouth of the tunnel to the centre of the cavern, where there was a large slab of white rock, just the right size to hold a body. Behind the slab was a large statue, taller than the rest, holding its hands out to the sides.

"We're here," said Zeang. "The Inner Chamber. There won't be any more traps from now on; they wouldn't dishonour the chamber like that. See that thing in the middle? That's where Raj-Cof will be buried. The Dragon Ball should be with the tombstone, right Arnika?"

The girl nodded, staring at the Dragon Radar. "Yep, according to this the Ball is dead ahead."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" asked Blitzo, and he hurried forwards, the others hot on his heels. Within moments, they had arrived at Raj-Cof's burial rock. The Dragon Ball wasn't anywhere to be seen.

"Where is it?" asked Rhuna, rather bluntly.

Arnika shook her head. "I don't know! This Radar says it should be within a five metre radius."

"Well, it's not here!" exclaimed Makurin. "Are you sure that you configured that Radar right?"

"Of course I did," snapped Arnika. "Ask Zeang, he worked on it the whole time with me."

"She's right," said Zeang. "There's no way we could have made a mistake. The Dragon Ball is here, somewhere."

Blitzo's eyes lit up. "It must be in the tombstone!" he said, pleased with his own reasoning. "Let's open it!"

Unfortunately, there was no visible way of opening the tombstone without breaking it open, and Blitzo had an odd feeling that committing such an act would set off a large trap.

"_Oh well, it has to be done," _he thought, and raised a hand to blast open the rock, but Zeang stopped him.

"Don't," he said. "That might not be a good idea."

"No, it wouldn't be!" called a voice out of nowhere. "Because the Dragon Ball that you seek is not in there!"

All six of them spun wildly, trying to locate the voice, before it spoke again. It was low and gruff, and made Arnika's hair stand on end. The voice was dripping with evil.

"Up here."

They all looked up. Next to them was an enormous pillar crafted out of marble. It stretch high into the air, and was one of the tallest in the entire vast room. And there was something standing on top.

Its feet were grey, and had three long toes on each foot, with sharp claws on the end. On top of each foot there was a spike, about three inches long. The feet were attached to long, muscular legs, which darkened from grey to black. The stomach area was a dull sort of red, but its sides were also grey. On its black chest was another spike, this one longer. The shoulders were bulging with muscles, and the folded arms were long, with grey hands. At the ends of the fingers were blood-red nails. Halfway up each arm was another spike. The skin of the entire body was very smooth, and seemed almost tight on the muscles. Poking out just above its rear was a long red tail, which was about a metre and half long.

The being's head was in darkness. The light from the lamps didn't reach as far as the top of its body. Whatever the head looked like, Blitzo estimated the height of this person, if you could call it that, at over two metres.

"Looking for this?" it asked, and unfolded its arms to reveal the Dragon Ball in its left hand. The Ball seemed to almost be pulsing, as if it were trying to escape the demon that held it. "Well, I'm afraid that you can't have it. "The Dragon Balls are _mine!"_

"We need it badly, so hand it over!" called Zeang.

The demon laughed. "If you really want it so much, then_ feel free to come and take it from me!"_

**000**

And so we introduce the villain! He's already featured in chapter 7 and 9, but for the first time he meets the heroes! But who is he exactly? And how strong is he?

Wait and find out!

Oh, by the way, I've made a few adjustments to the first chapter, to fix an error. Previously, Blitzo accidently turned the gravity up to 100x Vegeta's, but last chapter I said that the Saiyan-made gravity chambers couldn't go higher than 2x, so I chaned it to...aw hell, what am I telling you for? Just go read that first chapter again, lol.

Well, I'll see you sometime in the very near future!


	11. The Demon Shows It's Face!

**Dragon Ball X**

Wow, it's been a long time since I last updated this, wasn't it? Well, I feel I've been waiting too long, so here's the newest instalment of DBX!

Now, since it's been a while, a few of you might have forgotten where we left off. Last time, Blitzo, Makurin, Rhuna, Zeang, Kenta, and Arnika all set out to find their fourth Dragon Ball, hidden deep within an ancient Slavoan Tomb. Unfortunately, when they finally managed to penetrate the inner chamber of the tomb of Raj-Cof, they found the Dragon Ball already taken, by a shadowy figure, high atop a pillar, its face out of sight. Who is it, you ask? Find out now!

**000**

"Gladly," shouted Makurin, and he took off into the air towards the figure.

"Makurin, stop! We don't know his strength!" yelled Zeang, but it was too late. The proud Saiyan kept on going, determined to claim the Dragon Ball from the shadow. As he got closer, the being sneered menacingly. Makurin pulled back his fist and swung at the figure, shouting a war-cry.

Moving faster than Makurin thought possible, the demon intercepted his fist, catching the attack without any visible effort. Makurin's eyes widened; he hadn't expected this. Grunting, he tried to twist his hand out of the figure's grasp, but it was too strong; it had him held fast.

"Let me go," he said angrily. "You don't want to see me angry."

The demon laughed cruelly. "Bring it on, tough guy. You wouldn't stand a chance."

He pushed with the hand holding Makurin's fist and let go, sending the Saiyan flying backwards, performing a back-flip as he tried to halt his trajectory through the darkness of the tomb.

For the first time, Makurin thought twice about his actions. This...creature, or whatever it was...seemed to give off an evil aura. He was beginning to have serious doubts about his ability to win.

"Makurin, quick, get back down here!" shouted Zeang, but Makurin didn't listen, opting to zoom forwards and attack the demon. As Makurin's foot twisted around towards it, it seemed to melt into thin air. The Saiyan's kick cut straight through the spot the figure had just occupied, but it wasn't there to connect with.

"What?" he gasped. "Where'd he go?"

"Behind you!" shouted Arnika, but it was too late. The demon's dull red tail wrapped around Makurin's throat from behind, and tightened, cutting off his air-supply. Makurin's eyes boggled and he clutched at the tail, trying to wrench it off, but to no avail.

Suddenly, the tail grew even tighter, and swung him through the air, before lifting up and then slamming down, unravelling from his neck in the process. The downwards motion of the tail sent Makurin hurtling directly down, where he collided with Raj-Cof's tombstone, destroying it with the impact. A thick cloud of dust erupted from the ruins of the stone, covering them all.

"Makurin! Are you OK?" called Arnika. Slowly, the dust cleared, and they all saw Makurin. He was lying on his back, in the middle of the tombstone, which had caved in when he'd hit it. Grimacing in pain, he slowly climbed back to his feet and glowered at the figure that had defeated him so easily, who was still hovering above them, its head just out of the light.

"What is that thing?" Makurin groaned, rubbing his throat gingerly. Kenta answered.

"I don't know. But there's something about it that's just...I'm not sure. I can sense its presence, but I can't tell its strength. It's like its blocking me from measuring its power."

"I can't sense it either," replied Zeang. "But I can already tell that its power is enormous."

"Gee, I wonder how you figured that out," muttered Makurin.

High up in the air, the figure laughed. The sound sent chills down Blitzo's spine.

"Who are you?" he shouted.

The demon seemed to lower its head to look at him, although it was hard to tell when it was enshrouded in shadow. And then the figure descended, and the upper section of its body was thrown into the light.

The entire head was the same shade of red as the tail and stomach. Two large yellow eyes with impossibly black pupils stared at them all, but they did not blink, for the demon had no eyelids. Out of its forehead was a large horn-like appendage, although the end was not sharp, but flat. It rose about twenty centimetres above the head, and another two of the flat horns came from either side of the head, also pointing directly up, but shorter than the one on the forehead. The demon had no nose, and the mouth lacked lips. For ears, there were two holes on either side of its head. Not a single hair stood atop its head, and overall the figure was over two metres tall.

Slowly, the demon descended until it was atop one of the smaller pillars in the chamber, about twenty metres above the ground. Its arm's were folded; Blitzo couldn't help staring at the Dragon Ball that was still in its left hand. Then, the monster spoke.

"You want to know who I am? Very well; I am known only as...Denkuma. You should be honoured to stand in my presence, for I am the most powerful being in the Universe."

"My arse," said Rhuna defiantly.

"She's right you know," muttered Zeang to Kenta and Arnika. "Even though we can't sense his Power Level, I can still tell that he's considerably weaker than Frieza. Of course, that's still far superior to us.

"Oh really?" Denkuma inquired of Rhuna. "Then perhaps _you'd _like to test your strength against me. If you dare..."

Rhuna scowled angrily, and she began to slowly hover upwards. Kenta stepped forwards and placed a hand on her shoulder before she rose too high.

"No, you can't," he murmured. "You'll only get killed."

"Hands off, Kenta. A Saiyan never backs down from a challenge," said Rhuna fiercely, not taking her eyes off Denkuma once, who smiled tauntingly and beckoned to her. "Oh, that's it!"

The only female Saiyan in existence took off at the demon above her, the turbulence of her take-off sending Kenta sailing backwards. When she reached Denkuma, she unleashed a lightning fast barrage of punches, not one of which seemed to come close to hitting him. Forward punches, back-hands, uppercuts – not a single one connected. To make it worse, he was still smiling, as if it were all a big game to him, as he snapped back and forth, not once taking his feet off the pedestal he stood on, yet still managing to avoid the attack.

Rhuna screeched in anger, and punched out at Denkuma as hard as she could. He didn't dodge this time, and her fist slammed into his stomach with the force of ten trains.

Denkuma didn't even flinch.

"_What the –"_ thought Rhuna. "_That's impossible!"_

Denkuma crossed both his arms in front of his chest, and his smirk melded into a frown as he concentrated. Suddenly, he whipped his arms out to his sides, sending a wave of ki in all directions. Rhuna screamed as she was blown backwards, across the tomb floor, colliding with a series of pillars. The force of the attack was so great that she smashed straight through them. Large towers of marble and stone toppled down everywhere, knocked right out of the ground by Rhuna's flying body. About half-way across the vast room, and after knocking down at least fifty pillars, she pulled to a stop. Rhuna groaned, but managed to stay in the air. Slowly, she lifted her head and swept her air out of the her eyes.

"You're pretty good. But can you take this?"

She turned slightly to the side, and raised an arm, pointing her hand directly at Denkuma, who faced her silently. Rhuna's palm began to shine pink.

"Sparkling Amethyst Orb!" she yelled. Out of her hand erupted a purple sphere of energy the size of a small boulder. Pink sparks were shooting out of it, as it flashed across the chamber towards Denkuma. In the blink of an eye, he raised his own hand.

"Demon Flash!" he bellowed, and a black beam riddled with white spots detonated from _his _hand, shooting towards Rhuna, meeting her Amethyst Orb halfway. Denkuma's powerful wave obliterated Rhuna's attack, and kept on going, where it engulfed her. The girl was blown backwards, smashing through most of the pillars on the way. Finally, she impacted with the temple wall, becoming embedded in the rock.

Arnika gasped quietly as Rhuna slowly slid out of the wall and crumpled to the ground. The Saiyan girl was still moving, although only slightly.

"You'll pay for that!" hollered Blitzo, and both he and Makurin shot upwards towards the demon, who was smirking cruelly at Rhuna's twitching body. Blitzo went first, launching a powerful kick, which Denkuma easily ducked under, and then in an amazing display of speed and s0kill, propped himself up with one hand, manoeuvring easily around Makurin's rapid punches. Suddenly, he flipped back down, catching Blitzo and Makurin with each leg as he did so. The two of them careered to the ground, barely missing Zeang, Kenta and Arnika. Blitzo climbed painfully to his feet, Makurin mirroring his actions. This time, however, Zeang stepped forwards.

"Stop this now, all of you!" he said forcefully. Ever the smart one, he was trying to calm both sides down. "Look. We didn't come here for a fight. We just want that Dragon Ball. We need it. Now, just give it to us so we can leave. Thanks to you, Rhuna needs help. You've injured her badly with your attack."

Denkuma threw his head back and laughed. "You fool! There's absolutely no way that you're getting this ball! It's mine. And soon, the rest of them will be."

Zeang frowned. "Then I'm afraid you leave me no choice. Take this!"

His eyes glowed bright blue, and he raised an arm, making a choking motion with his hands. Denkuma's yellow eyes twitched rather forcefully, and he scowled angrily. Suddenly, he bent forwards slightly, and a small grunt escaped his lipless mouth. The demon seemed to be in pain, though was resisting it well.

"What...but how can Zeang be hurting Denkuma when even you Saiyans couldn't?" asked Arnika. "His Power Level is the lowest out of all of yours."

Blitzo answered. "Yes. Zeang's Power Level may be the lowest, but his attacks work in a different way to ours. Rather than attacking their body, he attacks their mind. In a way, he's just as strong as the rest of us."

"Then now's our chance!" exclaimed Kenta, and bounced into the air, unleashing a powerful punch at the demon.

"No, don't...you'll break my concentration," muttered Zeang, but Kenta didn't hear, and thumped Denkuma in the face. The punch had no effect whatsoever, but Zeang's eye contact was lost as Denkuma allowed his head to be knocked sideways. Zeang's concentration slipped, and his shining blue eyes faded back to their usual brown.

"Not good," he muttered. Denkuma turned and faced Kenta who gulped. This demon, who had encountered no trouble defeating the Saiyans so far, would have no trouble mopping the floor with him, a regular Havien.

And before he could dodge, Denkuma drove his right knee upwards into Kenta's stomach, doubling the teenager over, and sending him into a spasm of pain. Then, he raised his free hand (the other still had a firm grip on the Dragon Ball) high into the air, and bought it down on Kenta's head. The boy was knocked out instantly; he tumbled to the ground. Arnika ran forwards and knelt down by his unconscious body, but he was right out of it.

Meanwhile, Denkuma leaped off his perch atop the pillar and sailed down towards Zeang. The psychic tried to invade the demon's mind again, but Denkuma was averting eye contact, severely weakening the attack. Without its full power, Denkuma easily repelled the invading force, and connected his fist with Zeang's face, knocking the alien back several metres, where he collided with the statue overlooking Raj-Cof's tombstone. The statue cracked at the base, and collapse on top of Zeang, knocking him out as well.

"Oh no," gasped Blitzo. Now there were only three of them left; him, a weakened Makurin, and Arnika, who would have as much chance of beating Denkuma as a fly would of beating Cuo. This wasn't gonna end well.

Denkuma laughed as he descended to the ground, only mere metres away from Blitzo and Makurin. Arnika was still crouched over by Kenta's body, and had the most frightened look Blitzo had ever seen on her face.

"You're all pathetic," the demon sneered. "Did you all think that it would be a trivial thing to beat me? Just another challenge, perhaps? You have no idea of my true power. I haven't even used an ounce my strength, and half of you are already out!"

Blitzo bunched his fists, knowing that Denkuma wasn't exaggerating in the slightest. The demon took another step closer to them, causing the two remaining Saiyans to brace themselves. Denkuma smirked, and melted into thin air again. Suddenly, a clawed foot smashed into Blitzo's back. He screamed in pain, and fell to his knees, shaking in agony. At the same time, Denkuma grabbed Makurin and hurled him at another set of pillars. The Saiyan hollered out as the stone smashed behind him, but he managed to stagger back up once more.

"I'll get you, you beast!" he roared, and grunted as he charged up to his max. Suddenly, he raised his hands, fingers spread wide. "Swirling Tempest!"

Every one of the Saiyan's fingertips glowed, and with a sizzling noise, a thin beam shot out of each one. The beams twirled rapidly through the air towards the demon, moving incredibly quickly. Denkuma faced them confidently, and raised his hand.

"Zen-Toku!"

A small shield enlarged into being in front of the demon, and the beams bounced harmlessly off the barrier. Denkuma laughed, and the shield was lowered. Suddenly, he gasped as _another _set of beams shot seemingly out of nowhere. Before Denkuma had time to react, they hit all over his body, exploding on impact. Denkuma actually took a step back from the force of the attack, but he recovered quickly.

"Not good enough, I'm afraid!" he hissed, and Makurin frowned. All of his energy had been used up in the technique.

"Damn," he whispered, and fell to the ground. "_It's up to you now, Blitzo."_

The last Saiyan was still on the ground, trying to recover from the devastating kick in the back that Denkuma had delivered him. As he stumbled to his knees, the demon's foot was placed on his shoulder, and shoved him around. Blitzo fell back to the ground, gasping in pain. He crawled backwards, leaning up against the remains of Raj-Cof's tomb. Arnika was still a distance away; she had slid behind the ruins of a pillar.

Denkuma stepped forwards, towering over Blitzo's fallen body. The Saiyan looked up at him with hatred, but his eyes widened slightly as the demon raised a hand and pointed directly at him. Blitzo prepared for his death; for he knew it was coming. The ruthless look in Denkuma's eyes was unmistakable. He wouldn't show any mercy.

To Blitzo's surprise, Denkuma laughed, and his hand lowered slightly.

"Until we meet again. I can sense great potential in you and your pathetic friends. Maybe one day you'll care to join me. You could be great, you know..."

Blitzo looked back fearlessly. "Never. Why would I join _you?"_

Denkuma laughed. "Because I can teach you things and give you power you've never dreamed of! What you fools saw here today was nothing; only you got a small taste of my full strength with that kick. You should feel privileged; I do not spare lives often. Farewell."

The demon, with the Dragon Ball in his left hand, raised his right hand, extending his first two fingers and placing them in the middle of his forehead. Denkuma's bright yellow eyes narrowed, and then he shimmered, and disappeared.

"_W-What?" _thought Blitzo. "_He can Teleport? So that's how he got in here without setting off any traps..."_

He groaned, and closed his eyes. His back was killing him. Suddenly, a small sound entered his field of hearing, and Blitzo managed to open his eyes again to see Arnika crouching next to him.

"Are you OK?" she whispered. Blitzo managed a nod, then gasped as the action sent a spasm of pain down his back.

"No..."

Slowly, he drifted into unconsciousness. Half an hour later, he awoke to find himself being moved.

"Wha?"

Blitzo opened his eyes. He was being carried by a familiar face.

"Rhuna?"

The Saiyan girl had him slung over her shoulder and was carrying him through the tunnels of the tomb, towards the exit. As the sound of his voice, she turned to look at him. As soon as Rhuna saw that he was awake, she dropped Blitzo down onto the ground. He grunted in pain, but his back was hurting a lot less after his rest. He climbed to his feet.

"Are you alright?" he asked her. She nodded, grim-faced.

"Yeah. Arnika told me what happened. We got wiped, huh?"

Blitzo nodded. And looked around. About ten metres behind them, Zeang was supporting a weary Makurin, and Arnika had her brother's arm around her neck; he needed something to hold on to in order to walk.

"Come on," said Rhuna. "Let's get home."

**000**

It took two full days for the fighters to recover. At the end of the second day, the Saiyans, Zeang, Kenta, Arnika, and Don gathered in Arnika's lab. There was urgent business that had to be taken care of.

"We need to get that last Dragon Ball," said Rhuna. "We have three, and now that Denkuma's got the one from the tomb, then he has three as well. We have to get the seventh before he does."

"The Six-Star Ball," said Arnika. She was standing in front of the Large Dragon Radar, and as she spoke, she zoomed in on it. The Dragon Ball was thousands of kilometres away, on the other side of Haven. "By the looks of it, Denkuma's hidden his balls _here_."

She moved the camera to another part of the world. The Two-Star, the Four-Star, and the Five-Star ball were all grouped together on top of a mountain.

"We'll have to get those last," said Zeang. "Right now, we need to get that Six-Star. Let's roll out, the sooner we get it, the better!"

"I'm coming too," said Arnika.

"No _way!_" said Kenta. Arnika looked at him, so he continued. "You saw how dangerous Denkuma was; if we have to fight him again, then I don't think he'll let us go again."

"I'm coming whether you like it or not," said Arnika stubbornly. Kenta turned to their Father for support.

"Dad, you're not just gonna let her go, are you?"

Don sighed, and took off his glasses. "She's old enough to make her own choices," he said sadly. "If she wants to go, we can't stop her."

Kenta was silent for almost a minute, biting his lip furiously as he thought. Finally, his shoulder sagged.

"Fine," he said. "You can come."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" asked Makurin, always straight to the point. "Let's go before Denkuma gets there first!"

**000**

Taa-daa! I finally finished this chapter! It's been a while, hasn't it? I haven't had time to check this for mistakes, so feel free to point any out if you see them.

By the way, a little note on the pronunciation of Denkuma. Rather than actually pronouncing the U in his name, it's almost like a silent U (though not quite), as if it were said Den-k'ma. However, there is still a tiny bit of the U in it. Actually, it sounds a lot like the half-silent U in Sasuke, from Naruto. It's spelt Sasuke, but it sounds a lot like Sas'ke. Kind of like that. As for what he looks like, I based the face a bit on Janemba, from Fusion Reborn. Also, for the basic design of his head, look at a picture of Sauron's armour from Lord of the Rings to get an idea of the spikes, but he only has 3 of them. Also, the spikes are flat, not pointed.

Anyway, don't forget to review! Oh, by the way, for all of those who like Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh as well as Dragon Ball Z, me and Hotrod198 have made a collaboration fic named Yu-Gi-Mon: Legendary Crusaders. It's under the name Animasterod2198, a fusion of our usernames. Check it out if you like both Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokemon. If you can, review for that as well, we love reviews.

See ya!


	12. Unexpected Intervention

**Dragon Ball X**

Fantastic news. For some strange reason, at my house, one day it was absolutely pouring rain, and it looked like it would flood, and the next day the sun was out and we were fine (but it was still flooded in the city). So don't worry, I'm back.

Anyway, last time on DBX, the X gang - nicknamed that by Ialwayslie ;) – were utterly defeated by an evil demon, who was also hunting down the Dragon Balls. The demon, Denkuma, stole the Five-Star Ball, and disappeared, leaving the good guys bruised and beaten within Raj-Cof's tomb. A few days later, they've recovered, and are committed to snatching the last Dragon Ball before Denkuma can. Who will get there first?

**000**

The heavy wind whipped Blitzo's black hair around in the air, as the Saiyan streaked towards his destination. Far below him was a large forest, with all manner of creatures lurking within the dense undergrowth. Above the canopy, many birds flew, although none were as high above the ground as the five figures that soared through the sky. Not a few heads of animals turned to look at the shapes as they disappeared rapidly of the line of the horizon, but their interest didn't last long, and they turned back to grazing and foraging.

Next to Blitzo was Makurin, and next to _him _was Rhuna. Lagging behind slightly was Kenta, struggling to keep up with the Saiyans due to the fact that he was carrying Arnika on his back, a look of sheer terror on her face. She was clinging onto him for dear life, and it was even more uncomfortable due to the fact that Kenta's sword, Nenriki, was also strapped to his back, and the end of the sheath was poking painfully into her stomach.

"I can't believe I'm doing this!" she screeched in fear, and Kenta shook his head, before glancing sideways at Zeang, who had also heard the girl's scream. Zeang shrugged his shoulders, and Kenta smiled slightly. While Arnika had ridden on Kenta's back on the journey to Raj-Cof's tomb, they had been going nowhere near as fast they were now. Arnika clenched her arms even tighter around Kenta's neck as they sped up slightly.

The group was sparing no comfort; they had to get to the last free Dragon Ball immediately. As such, speed was of the essence, and all of them were being pushed to their limits, travelling at over 500 kilometres an hour. Up ahead, Blitzo and the other Saiyans pulled back a little, allowing Kenta, Arnika, and Zeang to close the small gap between them. Together, they pulled out of flight and hovered in the air, gathering around in a circle, 700 metres above the ground far below.

"Zeang," grunted Arnika, hanging from Kenta's neck. "Help me out here."

Zeang smiled. "Of course, Arnika."

She let go of Kenta, yet didn't fall; Zeang was levitating her with his mind. Rhuna turned to the girl.

"Alright, Arnika. How're we going?"

Arnika reached into her pocket and pulled out the Small Dragon Radar. She looked at it for a few moments, and then answered.

"Nearly there. We need to change direction...we're heading a little far east. Any sign of Denkuma?"

Kenta shook his head. "We can't sense him anywhere on the planet. Somehow he's disguising his energy signature completely. He could be anywhere..."

Arnika gulped. The thought of meeting the demon again rattled her to the core. Blitzo spoke up, interrupting her thoughts.

"Well, there's no point waiting around here. There's no time to waste – let's go."

Arnika wrapped her arms around Kenta again, and the six of them took off, accelerating to almost full speed again within seconds.

**000**

Nearly an hour later, they came within sight of their destination. Pulling out of flight again, they hovered in the air and surveyed it.

"Well," said Makurin. "We're here..."

The others nodded solemnly. Down on the ground was a vast expanse of land, but it wasn't empty. For covering the entire plane were the remnants of an old city, centuries old. It was at least ten square kilometres, and was built at the foot of an enormous mountain. All around the mountain was a rocky wasteland, stretching on for many more miles in every direction. But the ancient city itself was enough to draw any eye, for despite being in ruins it was magnificent.

Crumbling buildings, storey's high, littered the city, but no domain was completely intact. Pieces of rock and stone from the ruined building's lay on the timeworn streets, and several weeds sprouted from cracks in the stony ground that the city was built on. It was obvious that no one had lived here in years, but it radiated power. And to cap it all off, a mighty castle stood in the exact centre of the metropolis, five towers dominating the rest of the citadel; one in each corner, and the fifth (and tallest) rising from the middle of the castle. The castle was in relatively good condition compared to the rest of the city, yet was still decaying.

"Somewhere in that ruin lies the Six-Star Dragon Ball," stated Zeang. "All we have to do now is find it. Remember, we'll split up into pairs. Me and Arnika will find the actual Ball, while the rest of you stay on guard and act as decoys in case Denkuma finds us. Let's roll out."

"Are you sure you guys will be able to hold off Denkuma if he does show up?" asked Arnika, worried.

"Don't worry about it," answered Blitzo encouragingly. "Remember, our Power Levels have risen since we last fought him, because of our ability to get stronger after a near-death experience. That should be enough to hold him off for a while."

"But..." said Arnika. "Denkuma said last time – he said that he hadn't shown his full power yet."

"He was bluffing," said Makurin. "Or at least, we'd better hope he was, for all of our sakes. Let's go."

The fighters zigzagged down, past the high walls, and into the city itself. As they touched down to Haven, Arnika quickly planted her feet on solid ground and gave a loud sigh of relief.

"Let's roll out," said Zeang, and the six of them split into pairs, each heading in different directions. Arnika and Zeang hurried off deep into the clutter of wreckage, aiming straight for the Dragon Ball, which Arnika was tracking on the Radar. Rhuna and Makurin also wondered off in the opposite direction, quickly becoming lost amongst the buildings. Blitzo looked at Kenta, and then jerked his head towards the castle.

"Time's a wastin'. Let's get in there and have a look around. Maybe we'll find some treasure or something."

"Treasure hunting's not really the top priority right now," said Kenta. "But you're right, we'd better go."

The two of them began the journey through the streets. Blitzo was staring around at the surrounding houses. "This place is a mess. How long was it since someone last lived here, again?

"Almost three hundred years," answered Kenta. "People all over Haven reckon it's haunted, but I think it's a load of tosh."

"Well..." said Blitzo, looking through a house window and seeing a skeleton sitting at the table. "I don't blame them. This place _does _seem pretty haunted if you ask me. Nothing we can't handle, though."

Kenta laughed. "Of course not."

A loud cracking noise broke their conversation, and the two of them turned to see the skeleton walk right out of the house and stand in the middle of the street, staring at them. Slowly, its arm raised and pointed at them, the skull tilting slowly, a horrifying grin on its face.

Blitzo waved a hand casually. "See, that's just not natural," he said, not in the least bit frightened by the skeleton. "Tell me; how is it doing that?"

Kenta shrugged. "It's said that there used to be people on Havien that could bewitch things. Maybe it's cursed. Who knows?"

Blitzo walked over to the skeleton, stepping within arm's length of the supernatural being. As it tried to grab his arm, he frowned, and slapped it across the side of the head. The skull flew right off, and sailed through a window in one of the houses. The rest of the skeleton simply tumbled to the ground, dust billowing out from under it as it hit the stone.

Blitzo looked back at Kenta, raising an eyebrow. "Not a very strong enchantment."

"Nothing we can't handle," quoted Kenta.

**000**

"This place is like a maze," said Makurin, as he navigated his way through a particularly tricky section of fallen rubble. "I hope Arnika finds that Dragon Ball quickly, so we can get out of this dump. I don't like it here."

"Neither do I," said Rhuna icily. "But you don't hear me complaining about it!"

"Well, what do you want to talk about?" snapped Makurin.

"I don't know, anything besides how horrible it is here. That's all you've said for the past five minutes."

Makurin fell silent for about a few seconds, as the pair of them silently traversed through the city. "Where are we meant to be going, anyway?"

"Nowhere," said Rhuna. "That's the point."

Silence befell them again. But as before it didn't last long.

"I'm getting really sick of climbing over these rocks," said Makurin. "Why can't we just fly over them?" Suddenly, he caught the expression on Rhuna's face. "Shutting up," he said quickly.

Rhuna smirked, but answered him anyway. "We can't fly, because if Denkuma shows up we'll stand out like a pimple on a pumpkin."

"But if he shows up, he'll find us anyway by sensing our Power Levels."

Rhuna was about to give a snide remark, but stopped when she realised that Makurin was right. Her doubts about flying lowered even more when she saw the mountain of rubble coming up before them. It would take a long time to climb through that.

"Good point," she said quickly, and took off from the ground, hovering over the massive pile of rocks to the other side, which was quite empty of debris. Makurin grinned, and followed.

**000**

"How close are we?" asked Zeang. The big-headed alien was walking quite slowly, trying furiously to locate Denkuma's energy signature. While he couldn't sense the demon's exact power level, he should still be able to sense his location, but it was proving impossible.

Arnika looked up from the Radar as they turned a corner. "Nearly there. It's in this street."

The pair walked slowly down the road, between the two lines of ancient stone houses on either side of them.

"How's the energy search going?" asked Arnika.

Zeang looked disgruntled. "Badly. I just can't sense him anywhere! But it should be impossible; no one can fully hide their signatures, there'll always be a trace, unless they remove every single iota of energy from their bodies."

"Maybe he's doing that," suggested Arnika, but Zeang shook his head.

"He can't be."

"Why not?"

Zeang smiled. "Because if he extracted all of his energy, he'd be dead."

"Oh."

Finally, the two of them stopped outside a small house. The entrance was just a hole in the wall; the wooden door had long since rotted away. Zeang entered first, checking the house for anything potentially dangerous. About ten minutes before they had encountered a few wolves in one of the houses. Arnika had freaked out, but Zeang removed the threat by literally blowing the rabid animals apart with his mind. Since then, they had been cautious about what domains they entered.

After Zeang had reassured her that the house was harmless, Arnika entered, still looking at the Dragon Radar. Slowly, she walked around the house (the entire layout was a single room), and stopped, looking down at the floor.

"Apparently, I'm right on top of it," she said. Zeang jerked his head, and she moved out of the way. Then, he raised his hand and shot a small yellow ki blast at the stone floor, which shattered. Under the floor was a hollow space, and in the space was a wooden chest. Arnika ran forwards and grabbed it, wrenching it out of the space where it had found its home for the past few centuries.

"It's in here," she said excitably. "I can feel it!"

The chest had a padlock on it, but it was so ancient that it cracked right in her hands when she tugged.

"You could have just used this," said Zeang, picking a key off a small table. Arnika shrugged, and swung open the lid of the chest. Inside, on a cushion of faded purple velvet, sat the Six-Star Dragon Ball.

"Yes..." whispered Arnika. Reaching out, she snatched the ball out of its resting place, and stood up.

"Very good," said a voice from the doorway. "Now, we have to get out of here, unless you want that to fall into the enemy's hands."

Arnika and Zeang both spun around to face the newcomer standing in the doorway.

**000**

Blitzo stared around in awe at the high ceiling of the castle. He and Kenta were in the throne room, which was directly in the middle of the castle, and by extension, the exact centre of the city itself. The room was massive, and on each wall was a staircase, as well as high balconies overlooking the floor, which was covered in purple carpet, with yellow frills on each side. At the far end was the throne itself, a rather unimpressive slab of stone. Under each balcony were large pillars, holding the catwalks up. There were no windows in the room, and darkness lurked everywhere.

Kenta walked under one of the balconies, looking up at the bottom of the platform. There were cobwebs everywhere. Meanwhile, Blitzo inspected the throne, and even sat down on it. The seat was very uncomfortable, and the Saiyan squirmed as he tried to find a position that was agreeable. Soon giving up on the task, he joined Kenta in exploring under the balcony, and was covered by the shadows created by it.

As Blitzo's eyes adjusted to the darkness, something in his subconscious registered, and he was suddenly fully alert. He noticed Kenta also straightening up in alarm.

"Do you feel that?" muttered Blitzo, and he saw Kenta nod.

"He is here," the boy whispered.

Silence enveloped them, but without warning, it was broken by a slight sound: footsteps. Kenta's eyes widened in fear, as the sound moved above them. Someone was on the platform over their heads, and there was no doubting the blocked energy signature that had appeared out of nowhere. Denkuma was in the castle with them.

Slowly, the footsteps began to walk down the stairs, to ground level where the two fighters waited with baited breath. And then, the demon walked around the side of the staircase and entered their field of vision. As Blitzo saw his face, he recalled the previous fight with Denkuma, how easily they had been defeated. They would have to take him by surprise if they were to have any chance of beating him.

Kenta was having trouble containing his fear. As the two of them were in the shadows off to the side, Denkuma had not yet noticed them, and a thought sprung into Kenta's mind.

"_Shouldn't he be able to sense our signatures?"_

But no matter the reason, Kenta wasn't about to start complaining. Denkuma stopped by the throne, and stared at it, smiling slowly.

Blitzo saw his chance, and looked at Kenta, before making a fist motion with his hand, and then jerking his thumb at Denkuma, who had his back to them. The meaning was clear.

"_Hit him before he realises that we're here."_

Kenta nodded, and the two of them prepared to burst out of hiding and blindside the demon. The second before they could move, though, they were both grabbed from behind. A hand clamped over Blitzo's mouth, and he was dragged further back beneath the balcony, further back into the shadows. Glancing left, he saw Kenta receiving the same rough treatment. Suddenly a small, but strong voice whispered in his ear so quietly he almost missed it.

"If you wish to stay in the realm of the living, then don't move a muscle."

Blitzo froze like a statue. Every part of his body was itching to attack Denkuma before he lost the chance, but he obeyed the instructions. The hand over his mouth was slowly let go, and he turned as quietly as a ghost.

Standing directly next to him was a silhouette, covered by the shadow, and almost invisible. However, Blitzo could make out a few features. The figure was about as tall as he was, but was thinner, and less muscular. Short locks of hair spouted down to the base of the figure's neck, but from the shape of the body, Blitzo realised with a slight shock that it was a female. Beyond that, it was impossible to tell any more, due to the darkness.

Something else sprang to mind, and Blitzo suddenly realised what it was. Denkuma's energy signature had been impossible to locate, but now that he was here, they could sense his presence, though they were unable to tell what his Power Level was. But, as Blitzo had noticed, this woman's signature was _completely undetectable._ It simply wasn't there, as if she didn't exist. But she did exist; she was right there in front of them, and she had touched them, dragged them back. But they couldn't sense her.

As they stared, she shook her head very slightly, and nodded towards Denkuma, then pointed at the two warriors and drew a finger across her throat. It was obvious that she was trying to tell them that they would have had no hope of defeating him, and would die trying. Suddenly, Denkuma's head tilted slightly, and he spun around, looking directly at them.

"I see you!"

The demon raised one of its grey hands, which glowed. Suddenly, a massive energy wave shot out of his palm, heading straight for them. In the blink of an eye, the female twisted her arms around both Blitzo and Kenta, and (carrying the two under her arms) lifted them clear off the ground, flew across the throne room, and deposited them on the ground, before zooming back around and hurtling towards Denkuma. Blitzo marvelled at her speed, and knew instinctively that this woman's power, undetectable though it may be, was far beyond his.

Denkuma tried to duck under her foot, but was too slow, and got slammed backwards, cracking the stone chair as he did so. The woman landed deftly on one foot and pivoted around, before taking off again, heading for the massive door that led back out into the city.

"Follow me!" she yelled, her voice clearly carrying across the room towards where Blitzo and Kenta were stumbling to their feet. Obeying her at once, they took off into the air and shoomed out the door after her, leaving Denkuma behind.

**000**

As Arnika looked at the figure standing in the doorway, the first thing that registered about him was his appearance. It wasn't the man's face that was odd; it was perfectly normal, with a rather large nose, hard blue eyes and blonde hair that reached his shoulders. No, it was the fact that he was armed to the teeth that struck her as so odd.

The man was wearing rough, leather armour, which fit his body like a glove. Around his waist were two belts. The upper belt had at least twenty knives hanging from it, and the lower had two long, curved swords on either side. Each ankle had another knife strapped on, and on the man's back was a massive broadsword at least a metre and a half long.

"Who are you?" asked Zeang. He was in a battle stance, and looked prepared for a fight.

"Easy, friend. I mean you no harm," said the man. "But if you want to get out of her alive, you'll listen to me. That Dragon Ball needs to be removed from here immediately, before Denkuma gets his filthy mitts on it. That would spell death for the entire planet. Follow me."

"Hold it!" said Zeang. "Why should we listen to you? For all we know, you could be working for Denkuma. Tell us your name."

In a flash, the man drew one of the curved swords hanging from the lower belt and held it to Zeang's throat, whose eyes widened.

"My name is Geani," said the man. "And I just thought I'd let you know that if you don't do as I say, I'll have no qualms slaying you and taking the Dragon Ball myself. The fate of the entire planet hangs in the balance, now _follow me_!"

Geani sheathed his sword, and turned around, walking back out of the house, onto the street. Arnika and Zeang looked at each other, before following the swordsman out.

"What about our friends, and my brother?" asked Arnika. "We can't just leave them to their fates against Denkuma!"

"Do not worry," said Geani. "My companions are taking care them right now." He turned and glanced at the castle, two hundred metres away, just in time to see three distant figures fly out.

"Ah, there's Arasha now," he said. "She will get your friends to safet-"

He was cut off by a colossal explosion, as the entire castle detonated, sending massive chunks of rock and rubble flying into the air, which then crashed down onto the city, crushing several houses. When the smoke cleared, it revealed a tall figure hovering where the castle used to be.

"Denkuma!" gasped Geani. "Quickly, there is no time to spare. Follow Arasha and the others, she'll lead you away from here. "I'll try to hold off Denkuma for the time being."

No sooner had he finished the words when he started the fight. Swiping his hands upwards, they slid six knives out of their holsters into the air. Geani crossed his arms in front of him, catching the knives by their blades as he did so, holding the daggers between his fingers. Then, he uncrossed his arms, and let go of the knives, sending them spinning through the air towards Denkuma. Arnika's eyes widened at the incredibly slick manoeuvre.

Denkuma seemed to sense the knives coming, and turned just in time to dodge them. Even so, the last knife slashed across his cheek, leaving a small gash there. Black blood dribbled out of the wound, and Denkuma snarled as he saw the armed warrior far below.

"Go!" shouted Geani, and he gave Zeang a shove. In that moment, the alien felt Geani's true strength, as the shove sent him sprawling away. Climbing back to his feet, he allowed Arnika to climb onto his back, and then took off after the three figures who had escaped from the castle, and saw them to be Kenta and Blitzo, although the third person was unfamiliar to him. She had short black hair and, like Geani, was wearing leather armour, though was unarmed. Shrugging, Zeang caught up with them, and noticed two more people flying in from the other side. Makurin and Rhuna joined the others, and together, they all followed the mysterious woman, leaving the destroyed castle and the citadel far behind.

Back in the city, Geani hovered into the air, and reaching over his shoulder, drew the mighty broadsword on his back, and raised it towards Denkuma, who was still hovering about a hundred metres away. The demon gave an evil leer, and raised his hand. The air shimmered, and suddenly, a purple hilt appeared in his hand, with a plain crosspiece at one end. Then, with a massive _cccrrrhhnnngg _noise, a black blade shot out of the hilt, and Denkuma raised the sword, challenging Geani.

The swordsman didn't disappoint, hurtling through the air, and swung his sword like it weighed nothing. Denkuma's sword met it in mid-air, and they locked together.

"Geani...it's been too long," sneered Denkuma, effortlessly holding his massive sword in one hand.

"So, you escaped. I knew it would happen someday," answered Geani, and flicked his blade away, before stabbing forwards. Denkuma lightly knocked the sword out of its intended path, and the momentum of the thrust sent Geani soaring past him, but he quickly recovered and twisted back around to face Denkuma. The demon hovered forwards, and raised his black sword high into the air, before bringing it down upon Geani's head, who raised his own blade in defence. The two swords banged together, and Denkuma's blow was warded off, but Geani had only just managed to prevent himself from being cloven in two.

With a series of flashes and sparks, the two swords clashed again and again. Geani was obviously more skilled with the weapon; his technique outmatched Denkuma's, but the demon's speed and strength well made up for his handicap, and he was slowly wearing Geani down. The warrior's strokes were becoming slower, and less rapid, but Denkuma remained as fresh as ever.

Finally, with one powerful swipe, Denkuma knocked Geani's sword from his hand. The silver blade spun through the air, before falling down to the ground far below. Denkuma swung his sword again in a horizontal stroke, but Geani ducked under the blow, and darted away through the air.

Denkuma's sword melted into nothingness, and was about to follow Geani through the air when something flashed in the corner of his eye, and a foot slammed into his stomach. Another fighter flew in front of him. This one was large and muscular, and almost as tall as Denkuma. Short wiry hair covered his head, and he wore nothing but a murky green singlet and baggy, white martial arts trousers.

"Mataro!" grunted Denkuma, and Mataro grinned, before twisting around and flying off after Geani, who had vanished after all of the others. Denkuma filled with rage, and a black aura surrounded him.

"You can't escape from me!" he roared. "Give me that Dragon Ball, or suffer my wrath!"

And with a sonic boom, he exploded through the air after them.

**000**

Well, I think that this is one of my better chapters, if I do say so myself. I've put in a bit more description. Perhaps it's because I've been reading Lord of the Rings again, and Tolkien (who is perhaps the greatest author in history) tends to describe every single thing. Still, this has taken me about six hours to write. And I'm so happy, this is the first ever thing I've written that involves an actual sword-fight. I hope it's interesting to read.

So, who are these mysterious fighters? One thing for sure, they're powerful. Geani, Arasha, and Mataro. Who could they be? Find out next time, on Dragon Ball X!


	13. The Eternal Warriors

**Dragon Ball X**

Hey guys, wassup? I haven't updated in a while, and now for some bad news! School starts again on Monday, so I won't be able to update as often anymore. That's a bugger, isn't it? Oh well...life goes on.

Now, last time, in case you've forgotten, The X Gang managed to get their mitts on the Six-Star Dragon Ball. Good. Then Denkuma showed up. Bad. Suddenly, a small group of awesomely strong fighters (a swordmaster named Geani, a female warrior with amazing speed named Arasha, and a big muscular dude named Mataro who only got a small cameo at the end) showed up and saved them. Good. Now Denkuma's after them, and he's in a bad mood. Bad. How will they get out of this one? Find out right now!

**000**

"Wow, the view is amazing," gasped Téa, as she gazed in wonder at the rolling hills and lush forests far below out of the window of the helicopter.

"Yes, it is quite marvellous, isn't it?" agreed the pilot of the aircraft, Will.

A few months before, Téa had won first prize in a raffle competition, and had thus won a free helicopter ride over an area that she wished. Having always loved the natural portions of Haven, Téa had decided upon Mithran Forest, which was renowned all over the planet for its exquisite beauty.

"You know," began Téa, "When I entered that raffle, I never would have thought that I'd win. My friends were so jealous."

Will laughed. "And I never thought I'd be taking along someone as fine as you."

Téa blushed and placed her hand on her heart. "Oh, you're so _sweet! _Why can't all men be so polite and kind?"_"_

"Only common courtesy, Miss."

"Please, call me Téa," she said. Will nodded, but then something in the distance of the sky caught his eye (hey, that rhymes), and he turned the chopper around in mid-air to see it.

"What's that?"

"What's what?" answered Téa. She hadn't yet seen the abnormality streaking towards them at a very fast rate, so Will pointed towards it. Now that the smudge on the horizon was drawing closer, he saw that there were actually six shapes in total.

"Look at them! They're coming at us really fast."

"What could they be?" Téa asked uncertainly.

Will shrugged. "I'm going to bring us down a bit. They shouldn't be any danger to us, but you never know."

Before he could even begin to descend, however, the shapes were upon him. A massive shockwave hit the chopper, blowing it right out of its intended path and spinning around in the air. As Will fought to regain control of the helicopter, Téa screamed in his ear.

"They were _people! _People flying!"

Will bought their vehicle to a stop, hovering high above the forest, and turned to Téa.

"Are you sure? That's impossible, you know? People can't fly..."

"I know what I saw," she said stubbornly. Suddenly, her expression turned to fear as she gazed over his shoulder.

"Watch out, it's another one!"

Will turned back to the controls, but before he could move the helicopter, another projectile swooped by. This time, Will also got a proper look at it. A muscular man, dressed in leather armour, with knives strapped all over his body. And then he was gone, heading in the same direction as the others.

"What the hell is going on here?" Will muttered, and then gulped as two more shapes entered their field of view, following the others. The one in the lead was wearing a dark green singlet, and had very large muscles. Not far behind him was something that didn't even look Havien. It was mostly grey and black, but had a red stomach and head, as well as a crimson tail. The first man swerved to avoid the chopper, but to the horror of both Will and Téa, the second figure didn't even attempt to dodge.

A massive explosion lit up the air as the demon-like creature tore straight through the helicopter, a ball of flame bellowing out from the large hole that it had created. The creature didn't even flinch, but kept on flying, leaving a hunk of metal and sparks behind him. The chopper split in half as it fell, and Téa tumbled out the side, screaming rather comically as she began the long trip to the ground below...

**000**

"Keep flying!" shouted Arasha, as she led the way. On the surface of the planet far below, the forests they had just passed over were thinning, and suddenly ended, giving way to a vast stretch of desert. Rocks littered the dry ground, and ahead were some mountains.

Behind Arasha flew six more people. Blitzo, Makurin and Rhuna, as Saiyans, had a lot of speed, and were slightly ahead of the others. Trailing behind them was Kenta, and behind _him _was Zeang, with Arnika clinging onto his back. Her weight, though small, was dragging him down to a small degree. Still, they kept going, for they knew of the terror chasing not far behind.

In Arnika's pocket was held the Six-Star Dragon Ball, which she had stuffed in their a few seconds before the group zoomed off. To Arnika's horror, it was beginning to slowly slip out of the pocket, and the awkwardness of holding on to Zeang made it impossible to reach down and push it further in. If she let go, even with one hand, the turbulent winds around them would rip her off, and she would be thrown to her death.

"Zeang!" she yelled in his ear. "The Ball's slipping out!"

Unfortunately, with Denkuma following behind them, they couldn't afford to stop for even the slightest second. Even if Zeang used his psychic abilities to hold the Ball, the effort of concentrating would slow his flight down.

"Just hold on!" he shouted. Even if the ball fell, it would be better than letting Arnika fall.

And then it happened. The Dagon Ball, constantly pummelled by the winds, tore free of the restraints of the girl's pocket, and was flung into the air, then began to fall.

"The Ball!" screamed Arnika, but Zeang just kept flying after the others. As Arnika twisted her head around, trying to catch sight of the small sphere, a figure swooped out of nowhere and snatched it right out of the air. Arnika saw that it was Geani, who now rapidly sped up and drew level with Arasha. His wrist flicked, and tossed the Ball over to her. Despite travelling at hundreds of kilometres per hour, Arasha effortlessly caught the flying Ball without even glancing at it, and the group, now with the swordsman Geani amongst their ranks, sped on.

Both Geani and Arasha seemed to know exactly where they were going. The desert below them grew even rockier, with large cliffs and rough boulders littering the ground below. Gradually, Blitzo noticed that they were descending as they flew. Without warning, and at the exact same time, Geani and Arasha turned in mid-air to look behind them, but kept on flying backwards at the same speed. Blitzo turned his head around too, and his blood ran cold.

For Denkuma was close behind, perhaps only five hundred metres away, and getting closer by the minute. Just in front of the demon was another man. Arasha looked at the small group following her, and then called out.

"Keep following Geani!" she yelled, and after tossing the Dragon Ball back to Geani, twisted around, flying back the way they had came. Immediately, Geani dived down, and Blitzo noticed a large crevice in the rocky ground below, a few metres wide. Their guide swiftly zipped inside, and the others followed, descending rapidly to the depths of the crack, until they reached the bottom. After they had all landed safely, Geani pressed the Dragon Ball into Arnika's hands.

"Stay here. I must help my comrades."

And with that, he rocketed upwards, vanishing out of sight.

**000**

"I'll get you, you fools!" bellowed Denkuma, and Mataro gritted his teeth. With the monster close on their tails, they might have no option but to turn and fight. And they were so close to their destination...

He glanced behind them as he flew after the others. Denkuma was surrounded by a pulsing black aura, and his yellow eyes were almost literally flaming with rage. And yet, Mataro felt no fear. He never felt fear. Behind him, Denkuma raised a hand, which glowed. Mataro sensed the sudden surge in Denkuma's ki, and reacted by twisting randomly, dipping low to the ground. The ki blasts that Denkuma had released seared far over Mataro's head, crashing into a mountain and exploding.

The burly fighter flew back on course, just in time to see one of the figures he was following loop around and fly back. It was Arasha. With a massive whooshing noise, she careered past him towards Denkuma, who pulled out of flight just in time to dodge the punch that Arasha sent his way, before answering with one of his own. Denkuma's fist connected hard with her cheek, and she reeled backwards in the air.

Seeing that his companion needed help, Mataro swung around and hurled towards Denkuma, his foot outstretched. Denkuma twisted around and somehow intercepted the kick, grabbing Mataro's leg and throwing him away. Denkuma faced both of the warriors, his fists slightly raised.

"You wretches have defied my wishes for long enough!" he snarled. "And now you return, only to die without hope."

"We won't be the ones dying," said Mataro. His deep voice was filled with contempt. "That honour is reserved for you alone."

Denkuma's only response was to raise both his arms, pointing one each at Mataro and Arasha.

"Demon Flash!" he shouted, and two black beams, dotted with white spots, erupted from his hands. His two opponents swerved out of the way of the energy waves, and dashed through the air towards him, from either side. Denkuma engaged both of them at the same time, dodging and blocking their onslaught, while also striking back with enormous force himself.

And even though it was two against one, the evil demon still had the upper hand. His power and speed were both off the charts, and he was able to anticipate their moves, and thus counter them quite easily.

But Arasha and Mataro weren't giving up any time soon. They worked as a flawless team, each knowing the others moves and techniques like the back of their hand. They used this to great effect, yet could still not match Denkuma's skill.

All of a sudden, the two of them both wheeled away simultaneously, spiralling away into the sky. Denkuma glared after them, but out of the corner of his eye he saw the sun reflect off something, and before the demon could move out of the way, a knife slashed across his face. Denkuma roared in pain as black blood flowed out of the gash and down the side of his cheek. With a snarl, he turned to oppose Geani, who had thrown the knife. To Denkuma's supreme annoyance, the weaker fighters who Geani had been leading were gone.

"_Damn, I lost them! And they have my Dragon Ball!"_

Brimming with pure fury, Denkuma looked at Geani.

"Where are they? Tell me!"

Geani's only response was to draw another small knife and hurl it at him. Denkuma's hand flicked up and caught the dagger by the blade, before drawing it over his shoulder and spinning it back towards its owner. Geani's reaction was instant. Drawing yet another knife, he blocked Denkuma's thrown blade and charged at him, holding his dagger in a reverse grip.

Arasha and Mataro also closed in, but Denkuma's power suddenly surged, and he somehow combated all three of the fighters at once. Even with Geani lending his efforts, the trio still couldn't overpower Denkuma, who was fighting like one possessed, but Geani knew that Denkuma still wasn't even fighting at his full power.

"_We can't hold him off for much longer..." _the swordsman thought desperately. "_We have to retreat."_

"Fall back, and split!" Geani yelled.

The trio of fighters broke off contact with Denkuma immediately, bursting into flight and splitting up, all three of them heading in different directions. Geani erupted off towards the West, Mataro blasted East, and Arasha zoomed South, in the direction of the crevice that the Saiyans, Zeang, Kenta and Arnika were hiding in. Denkuma considered for a split second, and then followed Arasha, who grimaced as she flew.

"_Not good..."_

The wind blew her short hair wildly as she flew, and she twisted her head back and forth, looking for a place that she could lose the demon following close behind. In less than a minute he would be upon her, and she knew that she wouldn't stand a chance fighting him alone. Suddenly, an idea flew to mind.

Slowing down slightly, she allowed Denkuma to catch up a bit, and then corkscrewed around to face him, and extended two fingers, held slightly apart. The tips of the fingers burned bright red, and two extremely thin beams shot out of them, streaking across the sky and striking Denkuma directly in the eyes.

The demon screamed in pain, and stopped flying, reaching up and clawing at his eyes. Due to the fact that he had no eyelids, he was unable to close the source of his discomfort. In the few seconds that he was distracted, Arasha dived down and hid amongst the maze of rocks and boulders on the ground, vanishing from view. By the time Denkuma fought off the pain and was able to see again, the female fighter was gone. Denkuma clenched his fists, and let out a massive bellow of frustration. His oldest and greatest enemies had escaped once again...and the Dragon Ball had gone with them.

Slowly, he descended to the ground, landing on a large rock jutting out from a cliff face. The demon's awful face twisted in rage as he reflected upon how close he had been to defeating them. If they were any other enemy, he would have tracked their energy signatures down already, but these foes were unique...their energy could not be sensed.

As his rage reached its peak, Denkuma crossed his arms in front of him and then, with a scream of anger, sent a massive pulse of ki in all directions, disintegrating the surrounding area for hundreds of metres. Finally, the smoke cleared, and Denkuma was left hovering above an enormous crater.

"You may have won this round," he said furiously. "But you have not won this war. The inhabitants of this planet will pay for your mistake..."

**000**

Arasha reached the crevice, and slowly hovered down to the bottom. When she reached the floor, she saw the Saiyans, Kenta, Zeang and Arnika all standing in a group. When Makurin saw her, he stepped forwards angrily.

"What the hell is going on here?" he asked. "Who are you, anyway?"

"Be silent! We are not out of danger yet," she said quietly. Makurin opened his mouth again to say something, but Arasha turned her gaze to him, and he stopped. Arasha's eyes were violet, but hard and piercing. Makurin grew unnerved, as Arasha's unwavering gaze stared unfailingly into his own eyes, daring him to talk again. Makurin looked away first, stepping back to the others.

Arasha also stepped back, and tilted her head back, looking out of the crevice a hundred metres above. After ten minutes, two shapes flew in, landing next to her. Mataro and Geani.

"Denkuma's gone," said Mataro quietly. "He flew off like the Supreme Kai himself was following him."

"What shall we do now?" questioned Arasha.

"We achieved our goal," said Geani, who seemed to be in charge. "That is enough. Let us take our guests below."

He turned to the others. "Come. Follow us."

And with that, he turned and walked away, traversing along the crevice, Mataro and Arasha following him. Blitzo exchanged looks with the others, and together they hurried after the trio of warriors. Eventually, the ground steeped away sharply, leading far below the surface of Haven. The path was lit by candles mounted on the wall. For hours they walked, in utter silence. Once, Kenta had asked where they were going. No one had answered.

**000**

Finally, they reached their destination. The tunnel suddenly ended with a large door made of solid steel. Geani reached out and pushed the door wide open, leading into a large marble cavern, with a high ceiling. On either side of the room was a large wooden door, supposedly leading off into more tunnels. At the far end was a raised section of floor, with steps. On top of the raised dais was a large throne made out of some sort of smooth white rock. It had a high back. To the side of the throne was another door. Apart from that, the room was empty.

Mataro, Geani, and Arasha all walked forwards to the centre of the room. Zeang stepped forwards after them.

"Where are we?" he demanded.

Geani turned and answered him. "We are in the Hall of Hamasan," he said. "We are safe here."

"And who are you exactly?" asked Rhuna.

Geani bowed his head. "My name, as I told you before, is Geani. This is Arasha, and that is Mataro. We are the Forgotten Ones. The Ageless Fighters. The Eternal Warriors."

The word "eternal", coupled with the trio's interest with the Dragon Balls, sparked Arnika's interest.

"The Eternal Warriors? Are you connected the Eternal Dragon?" she asked. "The one who can grant wishes when it's summoned with the Dragon Balls?"

Geani opened his mouth to answer, but before he could, another voice cut in before him.

"They aren't. I am."

Everybody turned to face the direction that the voice had come from. While the throne had been empty before, now there was a figure sitting upon it. The newcomer had green skin, and was wearing a white robe. On his head was a white turban with a purple dome on top. Bordering the face were two large pointy ears. Although the turban was covering the alien's head, Blitzo knew that under it there would be a bald head and two large antennae.

"A Namek," he breathed. Zeang let out a small sound of disbelief and wonder.

The Namek tipped its head to look at Blitzo, and small smile reached his face. Now that Blitzo looked, he saw that the Namek was elderly. Wrinkles covered his face.

"I see you know of my species," he said. "As do I know of yours, Saiyan."

Rhuna gasped. "How could you possibly know that?"

The Namek turned his gaze to her. "I have met Saiyans in the past...before I arrived here. I would recognise those tails anywhere. But you do not have one?" he asked Blitzo.

"No. Mine was cut off," answered the Saiyan.

"Hang on," said Arnika. Everybody turned to look at her, so she continued. "What exactly do you mean when you say that you're connected with the Dragon Balls?" she asked.

"My name is Hamasan," said the Namek. "And my fate tied to the Dragon Balls more than you could possibly imagine."

"How so?"

"I am the guardian of them. If I were to die, the Dragon Balls would cease to exist."

Zeang was looking at Hamasan curiously. Like the Eternal Warriors, his Power Level could not be sensed. It was like they weren't there.

"Why can't I sense your ki signatures?" he asked.

Geani smiled. "That is because they are not there to be sensed."

"You've lost me," said Makurin.

Arasha spoke this time. "Our signature's were hidden long ago, by our former master. Hamasan was not the original guardian of the Dragon Balls. There was another..."

"My parent," remarked Hamasan. "He was known as Azimuth. A great Namekian he was, but also possessed two abilities; gifts that he could bestow upon another."

"What gifts?" asked Makurin sceptically.

"First, he could alter the ki structure of a living being so that it was undetectable," said Mataro. "This sanctuary also has that power over it. As long as you stay in here, you cannot be found by Denkuma. Likewise, even being in our presence will hide you. And second...Azimuth could grant eternal youth."

The Saiyans, Zeang, Kenta and Arnika all gasped as one.

"B-but that means..." stuttered Arnika. "All of you...how old are you?"

Arasha closed her eyes, a smile dancing on her face. She looked less than thirty. "I am five hundred and twelve."

"You're _what_?" gasped Kenta, unable to believe it.

"We've been living down here for centuries, hiding from the evil that has invaded this planet for all these years," said Mataro.

"Denkuma."

"Yes. That demon arrived on Earth centuries ago, searching for the Dragon Balls," said Geani. "We fought him, but he was too powerful, and eventually Azimuth gave his life to seal Denkuma away. But now he has broken free, and is determined to collect the Dragon Balls and summon the Dragon. Immortality is his wish, and he will do anything to get it."

"Why did you bring us down here?" cut in Makurin.

Geani looked at him. "We bought you down here for two reasons. First of all, you have the Six-Star Ball. As long as we have at least one Dragon Ball, Denkuma cannot grant his wish. Second...we bought you here to train you."

"To train us?" asked Kenta.

"Yes. You all possess power far beyond ours. If you can harness that power, perhaps Denkuma will be defe-"

"You are wrong."

Another voice cut into their discussion. Blitzo looked in the direction that it had come from, and gasped. Another Namek stood next to the throne, having just come through the door to the side. He was not wearing a turban, and was a lot younger than Hamasan. Like the rest of the Eternal Warriors, his signature could not be sensed. His face was angry.

"Korros!" said Mataro angrily. "Where were you when we were out there? We needed your help more than ever!"

Korros shook his head. "It was pointless to bring these weaklings down here. They are not strong enough to _ever _be a threat to Denkuma."

Makurin scowled. "You take that back!"

Korros looked long and hard at him with cold eyes. "You are pathetic."

Makurin was off like a whip. Flying forwards through the air, he swung a fist at Korros.

"How pathetic is this?" he shouted, but Korros was lightning fast. Dodging to one side so fast he was a blur, the Namek grabbed Makurin's other arm and twisted it up behind his back into an arm-lock. Makurin grunted in pain, and was forced to bend over forwards.

Blitzo stepped forwards to help Makurin, but a loud screeching sound rang through the cavern, and he felt the cold steel of a sword at his throat, and stopped dead. Glancing slowly sideways, he saw Geani, with one of his curved sabres outstretched. Geani shook his head.

"Stop. I might not agree with Korros, but Makurin needs to be taught a lesson in when to restrain himself."

Blitzo was still for a few seconds, then nodded grudgingly, and stepped backwards. Geani sheathed his sword. Meanwhile, Makurin was in more and more pain as Korros pulled his arm even further up his back.

"Let me go!" he shouted angrily. Korros didn't listen, but began to speak in a voice so low and menacing that Makurin actually stopped struggling.

"Do not test me, Saiyan! My power far outranks yours, and Denkuma's even more so. Do not make the mistake of thinking that you can defeat him using naught but sheer pride and what appears to be _unlimited _arrogance!"

"Enough of this!" ordered Hamasan. "Korros, let him go."

Korros wrenched Makurin around and gave him a rough shove. The Saiyan tumbled to the ground before he could stop himself, and climbed to his feet, giving Korros a death stare.

The Namekian seemed totally indifferent about Makurin's feelings towards him, and turned back around to walk back through the door that he had entered through, but stopped, and spoke to Hamasan.

"I do not know why you are bothering with these fools. They will never be able to defeat the evil that plagues our lands. We should accept it...this planet is doomed."

And with that, he disappeared. Hamasan gave a long sigh, and his face suddenly appeared even more aged than before.

"I am sorry about him. I'm afraid that Korros rather gave up hope years ago. Out of all of us, though, he has the most skill and power. It is saddening that he should be the one to give up. He was so strong-willed when he was young. But those days are long past. Enough talk for now. Arasha, take them to their sleeping quarters. We will talk more tomorrow. Farewell."

Hamasan stood up and followed Korros through the door beside the throne. Arasha gestured to the others.

"Follow me, then," she said, and pushed open the large wooden door on one side of the room. Behind was a large room, with several beds in it.

"Sleep well for now. I will fetch you early tomorrow. Then, your training will begin."

**000**

I'm glad I got this done before school started again. I hope you all enjoyed my killing of Téa at the beginning. Téa has always been the most annoying character of Yu-Gi-Oh, and even though this is a completely different universe to the Yu-Gi-Oh universe, I just had to kill her off somehow.

Anyway, I also hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Denkuma's pretty strong, isn't he? Well, he is a demon after all. And what about them Eternal Warriors? And do the Saiyan's really have enough power to defeat Denkuma? What about Korros? He doesn't seem very supportive, but you never know, he is the strongest Eternal Warrior.

Now, I'm sure a few of you might have been waiting for something like this, and I think it's time that it appeared, now that we've reached this point in the story: A Power Level Guide. These are the Power Level's of all of the main characters, at this point in the story:

Blitzo: 22,500

Makurin: 22,450

Rhuna: 22,450

Kenta: 15,000

Zeang: 13,000

Arnika: 300

Hamasan: 25,000

Geani: 59,000

Mataro: 55,000

Arasha: 57,000

Korros: 66,000

Denkuma: 80,000

And there you have it. Now, it's time for me to sign off. I guess I'll see you all around sometime in the future. Now that school's back I won't be able to update as frequently, so it might be a while before I post another chapter.

Until we meet again!


	14. Sanctuary

**Dragon Ball X**

Hey, remember me? I'm that guy that writes that story about those people that have those fights.

Anyway, it's been a while, but I've been back at school and stuff, so...yeah. I _was _going to write a chapter for Aura Adventure, but I started watching Kung-Fu Panda, and that got me into a fighting mood, so I decided to do this instead.

On with the chapter!

**000**

"Saiyan! Awake!"

Blitzo sat up sharply as the harsh voice cut through his sleep like a knife. He was lying on a low mattress, suspended less than half a metre from the ground. Turning his head, he saw that it had been Arasha who had disturbed his sleep. The leather armour that she had been adorning the day before was still on her.

Rhuna was already on her feet, as was Kenta. Makurin, Blitzo, and Arnika were all still on their bunks, and in the corner of the chamber stood Zeang, leaning against the wall with his head bowed. As his species didn't need to sleep, he had been in that position all night, meditating. Raising his eyes now, he walked forwards and joined the others. Rhuna and Arnika also rose, and Blitzo followed a few seconds later.

"Follow me," said Arasha. She was a woman of few words, it seemed. After leading them to the sleeping chambers ten hours before, she had disappeared after telling them to rest. The small group, exhausted from the previous day, had all fallen asleep almost instantly.

A few minutes later, they had assembled in the main chamber, the Hall of Hamasan. Arasha had slinked off to the side of the room and placed herself astride Geani and Mataro. Hamasan himself was again sitting on the large white throne, but Korros was nowhere to be seen. The Saiyans, Zeang, Kenta and Arnika subconsciously formed a line, waiting patiently for someone else to speak. When no one did, Zeang broke the silence.

"What happens now?"

Hamasan waited a few seconds before answering. "You will be trained. After you retired last night, we decided upon the mentors."

"Mentors?" asked Kenta.

"Yes. Blitzo and Rhuna. Step forwards please."

The two Saiyans obeyed, stepping out of the line, and slipping each other nervous looks.

"You two will be trained by Mataro," continued Hamasan. The big warrior, still wearing his green singlet and white martial arts pants, swaggered over and flashed them a large grin. Rhuna answered it hesitantly. She liked Mataro; he seemed more Havien than the others.

Mataro beckoned. "Come on, guys. We'll head over to the combat room and do some sparring. I need to test your capabilities before we really start the big stuff."

Turning away, he strode off, pushing open a large wooden door on the other side of the room. Rhuna and Blitzo followed close behind. Blitzo was filled with a sealed excitement. One half was raring to go, the other was uncertain. Little did he know that Rhuna was feeling exactly the same way. Behind the door was a fork in the tunnel; Mataro led the way down the left path.

As the doors slammed behind them, Hamasan looked at the remaining group. "Makurin. Zeang. You two will be taught by Arasha."

The second Ageless Fighter nodded at her new students, and led the way over to the same door that the others had walked through. This time, however, they took the tunnel on the right.

Finally, Hamasan looked at the siblings that remained.

"Kenta," the Namekian started. "You possess a sword, do you not? So does Geani. He will be your tutor. Good luck."

Geani, still in his battle-ruined clothes from the day before, stepped right up to the young Havien and extended a hand, smiling wisely. Kenta accepted it, and then Geani gestured towards one of the doors behind Hamasan's throne.

"Unlike the others, we will be training in my personal armoury," he declared. "Follow me, if you please."

And just like that, the two of them disappeared. As he vanished into the depths of the underground sanctuary, Kenta looked apologetically over his shoulder at his younger sister. She was only fifteen, and had never been in a situation where death was a highly likely outcome. But there was nothing he could do about it now. The best way to help her would be to become strong enough to defeat the danger.

Arnika shivered as the final door closed. Now she was alone in the room with Hamasan, and she wasn't entirely comfortable with that fact. In her eyes, this whole situation was partly his fault. Wasn't he the guardian or something? Surely it was his responsibility.

"Come, my child," said the elderly Namek. Arnika slowly shuffled towards him, and sat cross-egged on the floor. Hamasan gave a long weary sigh.

"Something is troubling you, is it not?" he asked. Arnika looked him directly in the eye, a sceptical look on her face.

"If that wasn't obvious, then you're not as wise as the others made you out to be," she answered dryly. To her surprise, the old man let out a low rumbling chuckle, and Arnika instantly felt guilty for thinking dark thoughts about him. It was clear that he was not offended by her remark, and it was also clear that he was a compassionate person. Arnika knew that a lot of rulers would have taken that comment as an insult to their intelligence, but Hamasan evidently didn't feel that way. She gave a small smile.

"So tell me, what burdens you?"

Arnika's smile faded. "I'm scared," she said. "I never expected this, to be dragged into the middle of a war. In fact, I've never been so frightened in my entire life."

Hamasan looked sad for you. "I am sorry that you have become involved. This will not be an easy task, and Denkuma is a particularly deadly opponent. It is not a safe place for a young girl such as you."

Arnika gazed at him, her eyes clouded in fear. "Do you think that it's possible to beat him?"

"I do not know," answered Hamasan. "But I know this. Nothing is certain. Anything could happen in battle, but despite our numbers, Denkuma is still powerful enough to destroy us."

"Is he that strong?"

"I'm afraid so. Denkuma is a fully-fledged demon, and therefore possesses powers far beyond that of a simple Havien. The future is uncertain." Reaching into the many folds of his robe, he extracted a small object from a hidden pocket, and held it up so that the candles reflected off its orange surface. It was the Six-Star Dragon Ball that they had snagged before Denkuma could get to it.

"As long as this stays down here, Denkuma cannot gather all of the Dragon Balls, and cannot make his wish for immortality. That, at least, is an advantage that lies on our side."

The elderly Namek fell silent, but something was preying on Arnika's mind.

"Hamasan?"

"Yes? What is it?"

"When was the last time that the Dragon Balls were used?"

Hamasan sighed again. "I cannot remember. They have never been gathered in my reign. When Azimuth created the balls, they were used a small number of times, but soon they had passed into legend, and forgotten. When Azimuth moved on, he passed the Balls to me, but they have not been gathered since then. I do not even know what the Dragon looks like. I do, however, know its name."

"What is it?"

"The name of the Eternal Dragon is Azulong. Unfortunately, any further details are lost. I guess we'll discover the rest if we summon Azulong, won't we?"

Hamasan smiled, and Arnika returned it warmly. Hamasan was very kind, and she was warming up to him quickly. Then she remembered something else.

"Are you and Korros related?"

It was a long time before Hamasan answered, and for a moment Arnika wondered if he had even heard her. Finally, she received his answer.

"Yes. He is my son."

"Does he have a Mother?"

"No. Namekians do not need a partner to reproduce. We are asexual."

Arnika nodded, absorbing all the information. Namekians were interesting.

**000**

As Geani reached the end of the passageway, he swung open yet another wooden door, revealing a large and spacious room beyond it. Kenta looked around in surprise. On every wall were several racks, literally covered in various swords and other sharp objects. They ranged all over in size and length.

Geani walked over to one of the smaller racks and replaced several knives on his belt. Then, he reached up and pulled down another broadsword; his old one had been lost in the battle against Denkuma. It seemed that he had an enormous supply of weapons and didn't need to fear running out of them.

The far wall, opposite the door, was the oddest segment. The entire wall was made out of a dull silver metal. The sheet was covered in large scratches and deep cuts. It obviously looked like Geani used it to practice his swords against.

Geani was standing next to the wall now. He beckoned Kenta to join him, and held out his hand. "Let me see your sword."

Kenta obeyed, sliding his sword out and reversing it, before handing it to Geani hilt-first. The swordmaster lifted it up, feeling its balance, inspecting the keen blue blade with a sharp eye.

"A fine sword. What is its name?"

"Nenriki," replied Kenta. Geani nodded, accepting the title.

"Faith. I see. Crafted by Borg, I presume?"

Kenta nodded eagerly. "You know of him?"

Geani smiled bitterly. "You could say that. My brother was always a bit of a tinkerer."

Kenta's jaw dropped. "Your _brother? _But...he can't be..." Slowly, the young Havien's voice faded away as he remembered the supreme age of the man he was talking to. Over five hundred. Kenta realised that it was entirely possible that Geani was related to the master smith, Borg, who had lived hundreds of years ago. It would certainly explain the large amount of swords around the room.

Geani nodded a few more times, still staring intently at Nenriki. "Yes..." Suddenly, he raised the weapon and struck it against the metal wall. As the blade reached the wall it stopped, and to Kenta's amazement and shock, the steel of the sword bended and shattered, sending shards of metal flying in all directions.

Kenta gasped, and sunk to his knees, his eyes wide. Just like Shinsou, Nenriki was priceless, and was centuries old. To lose it so suddenly was horrifying. Inside, Kenta felt a deep sense of failure. Now, both Shinsou and Nenriki had been destroyed.

Geani looked completely indifferent. "Yes..." he murmured again, staring at the hilt, which had a small shard of the blade still attached. The rest were scattered. "A sharp and strong blade, there is no doubt about that. However, it is still rather flimsy and unpractical against an enemy like Denkuma. But...I must inquire of you...how did you come by that sword? I was under the impression that few of my brother's art remained."

Kenta was scrabbling on the ground, attempting to scoop up the shards into a small pile. Stopping for a moment, he answered in a defeated voice.

"It's been passed down in my family for generations. My old teacher, Ferris, had been trained as a swordsman since he was a child, and when he heard of the swords, my father gave one to him. That was about six years ago. In exchange, Ferris took me as his student, and was one of the greatest friends I ever had."

"What happened to him?" inquired Geani. He sounded genuinely interested.

"He's dead. When Blitzo and the others arrived on Haven, they were followed by two aliens. Ferris tried to fight them, and he was killed." Kenta stood up, and looked directly at Geani, seeing the sympathy in the swordmaster's eyes. "That's why we're collecting the Dragon Balls. To bring him back to life."

Geani bowed his head. "I am sorry for your loss."

Kenta acknowledged it with a small nod. "How come you guys are so strong? I mean, I know you've had centuries to train, but you're all so powerful."

Geani tilted his head thoughtfully. "Interesting question. Tell me; have you ever heard of the race of Haviens known as the Slavoans?"

Kenta remembered in a flash of realisation. The tomb of Raj-Cof. Instantly, Arnika's explanation of the kingdom of Slavo came rushing back. An ancient warrior race, possessing incredible force. Geani must be a Slavoan. He was definitely old enough.

"We all are," said Geani, seeing that Kenta recognised who the Slavoans were. "The Forgotten Ones. We are not ordinary Haviens." He smiled. "And we're not the only ones..."

"Huh?" asked Kenta.

"You are infinitely younger than us, but you have strength unrivalled by most. Your potential is limitless, Kenta. And then there is the issue of the sword. My brother, Borg, forged these swords and presented them to the King of Slavo himself. When the king died, the swords passed to his sons. When _they _passed away, Shinsou and Nenriki were passed down again. And so on and so forth."

"Hold on a minute," interrupted Kenta. He thought he knew where this was going. Geani gave a knowledgeable smile.

"Yes. You have Slavoan blood running in your veins. But that's barely the tip of the iceberg."

Kenta shook his head in disbelief, but Geani continued on.

"You are a descendant of the King of Slavo. All the evidence is there."

Kenta lent against the wall, shaking his head. It was too much to take in. Him, a prince? Or maybe even a King? Yet inside he knew it must be true. There was no other explanation for both his enormous natural strength and talent, as well as the swords.

"Wow," was all he could say. Geani smiled, and then bent down and piled the shards of Nenriki into a small pouch hanging from his lower belt.

"Over the centuries, I have honed my smithing talents to make swords several times harder than diamonds. I can reforge your sword, to make it able to withstand heavy impact, but it will take a while. Until then, practice with this."

The Eternal Warrior reached to his belt and pulled out one of the two curved swords that hung from his belt. Holding it by the blade, he passed it quickly to Kenta, who accepted it. As soon as Geani let go, Kenta gasped. The sword weighed a ton. Without Geani holding it up, the full weight of the blade was on Kenta, and he grunted as he struggled to pick up the weapon.

"Very good," said Geani cheerily. "Now, swing it at the practice wall."

"B-but I can barely lift it!" gasped Kenta, as he managed to lift the entire sword off the ground at once. Geani looked at him, and raised one eyebrow.

"And...?"

Kenta grimaced. "Right on it."

With a massive effort, he heaved the sword around and swung it over his head. The tip of the blade struck the wall lightly, barely making a mark at all, and the sword scratched a shallow groove in the wall as it fell to the ground. Kenta was sweating from the effort. Meanwhile, Geani seemed impressed.

"Well done. Keep practicing that, you'll find that the more you use it, the easier it'll be to carry. I shall go and begin work on Nenriki."

And with that, he vanished through the side door, and closed it lightly shut behind him. Kenta shook his head, and continued to try and attack the wall with the cumbersome sword. He realised how strong Geani must be to lift the sword and wield it like a toy, and fight easily with the broadsword, which was at least twice as big as this small curved sword.

"_Wow, he's good. I guess I shouldn't be surprised; he's had years to train, and he's a Slavoan. And so am I! That's interesting to know..."_

That must mean that Arnika's a Slavoan descendant as well, he realised. And his father, Don, as well. Another question rose to his mind. Was Ferris a Slavoan too?

**000**

Ferris was running. A strong wind blew his hair around as he dashed along the thin path. Stopping briefly for a rest, he looked around for the millionth time at his surroundings.

He was on a structure called Snake Way. Below his feet was an incredibly long bridge, which looped around and twisted constantly on the bed of clouds that it sat on. Ferris had been running for more than a month.

The warrior thought back to what had happened when he had died. After having his neck broken by the alien, Cuo, Ferris had been impaled through the forehead by a small energy beam. All he could remember after that was waking up in a large room, in front of a colossal desk with an even more colossal being behind it. It wore a purple suit, and had a dull pink skin, as well as a large black beard and a helmet.

The being, King Yemma, had told Ferris that he was to be given the choice of running along Snake Way to the planet of an alien called King Kai, who would provide Ferris with incredible martial arts training. Ferris had agreed instantly, and with five minutes had set out onto the massively long path.

And now, over a month later, he had nearly arrived. He could see the end of Snake Way coming closer, and so picked up the pace a little.

It took another seven hours to reach the end, and the path finished neatly with a snake's tail. Ferris looked up into the sky and say a tiny planet floating in the sky above him. It was green, and had a few trees on it, as well as what looked like a house and a bright red car. Ferris raised an eyebrow, but then bent his legs and launched himself into the air towards the planet. It was time for _his _training.

**000**

Ooh, a surprise cameo from Ferris at the end there. Bet you weren't expecting that. And not only that, but Kenta's descended from ancient Kings! How's that for a twist?

Overall, I don't think I did too well on this chapter, but it is 4:00 in the morning right now, and I wanted to get this done, so...yeah. So much for an Aura Adventure chapter, eh?

Anyway, next time on Dragon Ball X, we take a lot at how the Saiyans and Zeang are doing with their trainers, Arasha and Mataro.

See you then!


	15. Let's Get Physical

**Dragon Ball X**

Hey, guys. It's been a while, I know, but as some you might have noticed, I've started my Pokemon story again from the beginning, as a rewrite, so I've been focussing on that for a bit. Man, time flies, that's for sure. I've been at school for _ten weeks_ already, next week is the last week of this term. Weird...

Anyway, on with the chapter!

**000**

"Start!"

As Mataro's call echoed throughout the cavern they were in, Blitzo took off from one foot, rocketing through the air at Rhuna, who answered in kind. The two of them met in mid-air, exchanging several rapid blows in quick succession, before breaking apart and landing. As soon as his feet touched the ground, Blitzo spun around, lashing out with his right foot as he did so. Rhuna grunted as she was struck on the hip bone, but she grabbed his ankle and tugged, causing Blitzo to stumble forwards.

As he lent backwards to stop himself from falling, Rhuna pivoted, attempting to crack Blitzo in the face with the back of her fist. Blitzo evaded by zooming up into the air and bounding over her head, dodging the attack and regaining his balance at the same time. Unfortunately for him, Rhuna was expecting this, and she ducked under his next blow.

"That's enough!" interjected Mataro, and the two Saiyans stepped backwards, eyeing each other suspiciously. This was the seventh time they had sparred in the last half-hour, with small rests in between.

The three of them - Blitzo, Rhuna and Mataro – were in a vast dojo, with a massively high ceiling for aerial training and a smooth floor, made out of polished rock. Mataro had brought them here after he had been selected as their trainer, and the Eternal Warrior had immediately pitted them against each other in order to evaluate their style and fighting technique.

Right now, Mataro nodded thoughtfully as he examined the two fighters in front of him. Rhuna was the smarter and craftier fighter, and used that to her advantage; instantly assessing the situation and acting upon it, and using rather unorthodox strategies to catch her opponents off guard. Meanwhile, Blitzo was more direct; he had more speed, hit harder, and possessed greater endurance than his companion.

However, they also both had weaknesses. Blitzo tended to rush straight in without thinking, and Rhuna often used this hurriedness to her advantage. On the other hand, Blitzo was adept at blocking and withstanding powerful strikes. Rhuna was rather less proficient at guarding herself from damage.

Mataro nodded. "Interesting. You are both naturally skilled, and very accomplished for your age." He smiled wistfully, and he seemed to be flashing back to when he was younger. Then he was straight back to business, but still with his trademark wide grin. "Anyway, I think I've got a good idea about your strong and weak points. We'll have to work on eliminating the latter, but not right now. First of all, I've got a very important lesson to teach you..."

Without warning, he flicked out his arm, catching Rhuna in the face and knocking her back several metres, where she fell to the ground. His speed was incredible.

"Always be wary of an attack from anywhere!" Mataro barked, then turned his back to Rhuna and faced Blitzo, who was looking rather alarmed. "Keep that in mind," the Ageless Fighter warned. "You never know when an opponent, or even an ally, could lash out at you. To prevent this, keep your guard up and be prepared for an assault at any time. You got that?"

Blitzo nodded. "Loud and clear."

Mataro dipped his head. "Good."

Behind him, Rhuna had risen from the floor. She was holding her nose, which was aching from the powerful blow that Mataro had delivered. Suddenly, an idea reached her mind, and she crept across towards Mataro as quietly as possible. When she was right behind him, she raised her palm, ready to slug him in the back. A small smile spread across her face, and her arm snapped straight. Mataro had no warning.

And so she was surprised when, demonstrating superb reflexes and perception, he ducked right under her arm, which sailed straight over his head and mashed Blitzo's nose. The Saiyan shouted in pain at the unexpected assault, and he staggered backwards, groaning in pain.

"What the hell?" Blitzo yelled.

Rhuna's eyes grew wide. "I'm sorry," she gasped.

Mataro chuckled from where he was still crouching on the ground, and he twisted his head to look around up at Rhuna.

"Nice try, but too slow."

Suddenly he rocketed back into a standing position, while at the same time holding out his elbow. The solid bone struck Rhuna under the chin, sending her flying into the air and landing twenty metres away. She staggered to her feet and glared at Mataro. That cocky grin on his face seemed to be taunting her.

"Attack me!" he roared. "Give it all you've got! Don't hold back!"

Blitzo and Rhuna both obeyed without argument. From opposite sides, they charged Mataro, Rhuna clenching her fists, Blitzo extending his foot. Then it happened.

Just as they reached him, Mataro flew up into the air, high above their heads. The two Saiyans, unable to stop themselves in time, collided hard, Rhuna's fist hitting Blitzo in the throat, and his foot sinking into her stomach. Rhuna wretched, but Blitzo looked upwards to see Mataro hovering about fifty metres above, about halfway to the ceiling. His arms were folded, and the grin was back.

"When in battle, use everything possible against your opponents, _including themselves_!"

Blitzo snarled savagely. If there was one thing a Saiyan hated, it was being bested, and Mataro was completely dominating them.

"Let's get up there and take him out!" he growled, and Rhuna nodded. "Ladies first."

"You're too kind," answered Rhuna, before cannoning up into the air towards their opponent, who waited patiently, his arms still folded. As she neared Mataro, he swept to the side, and dodged effortlessly. Below, Blitzo was following her, but fared no better than Rhuna. This time, after dodging, Mataro twisted and grabbed Blitzo's leg, before heaving him around and launching him towards the ground.

Blitzo yelled in disbelief as the ground rushed up to meet him...literally. With a mighty crack, he collided with the floor, actually smashing the rock with the impact, and lay there groaning. The power behind the throw had been incredible. Mataro was not playing around.

Up above, Rhuna turned just in time to see the man rocket up at her, before he thrust out his arm at her. Rhuna folded her arms to protect herself, but as Mataro had noted before, defence was not her strong suit, and Mataro easily pushed her backwards into the ceiling.

Rhuna cried in pain as she smashed into the stone roof, but Mataro didn't stop pushing, relentlessly driving her into the rock. Small pebbles broke loose and crumbled to the floor far below as she was actually pushed into the stone, until she was completely surrounded by bedrock.

"Break free!" commanded Mataro, his voice booming into her head as she sunk further and further into the ceiling. Rhuna replied with a scream, releasing a wave of ki that forced Mataro back a few metres, and Rhuna took the opportunity to escape from the entrapping rock, and flew a safe distance away.

Mataro eyed her, but before he could begin the chase, a shape tore out of nowhere, and a powerful fist drove into the side of the Eternal Warrior's face. The blow was so powerful that it actually sent Mataro hurtling through the air, and he collided with ceiling. A dust cloud billowed out around him, and Blitzo smirked in celebration as he saw the damage his attack had done.

Then the dust cleared to reveal Mataro, without a scratch or bruise on him.

"What?" gasped Blitzo. "But I put all my strength into that punch!"

Mataro gave his signature grin once again, but it faded slightly as he rubbed his jawbone. "Not bad, Blitzo. Not bad at all..."

Watching from the side, Rhuna gasped as Mataro disappeared, and then reappeared right in front of Blitzo.

"_How did he move so fast?" _she thought. Then it hit her. Mataro hadn't been fighting seriously before. He had completely wiped the floor with them, and he wasn't even trying.

Blitzo tried to punch Mataro, but by the time the fist reached him, Mataro had vanished.

"Up here."

Blitzo glanced upwards just in time to receive a full force punch to the chest. With Mataro's full strength behind it, Blitzo plunged to the cavern floor, and collided with the ground, which basically exploded. Chunks of rock flew everywhere, and when the dust cleared, there was a five metre deep crater in the floor. Blitzo was lying at the bottom, his arm twisted behind him in a horrible disfigurement. He was unconscious.

"Whoops..."muttered Mataro. "I broke his arm. I'll have to be more gentle next time." Suddenly, he turned to look at Rhuna, who was staring wide-eyed in shock at the crater. "Well, it's your turn, my dear."

In the blink of an eye, he was behind her. Rhuna spun around, but before she could mount an attack, Mataro swung his foot around and caught her in the stomach. She flew through the air and landed next to Blitzo, groaning as she clutched her belly. Mataro flew over to them and slowly descended to the ground, just in time to see Blitzo wake up.

The Saiyan shook his head groggily, when all of a sudden his eyes bulged and he yelled out in pain, twisting his head to look at his shattered limb.

"You psycho!" he shouted at Mataro. "This is a training session, you're not meant to break my arm!"

Mataro reached into a pocket in his white pants, and pulled out a small wrinkled ball. It was dark green, like Mataro's shirt. Breaking it in half, he tossed one half to each of them.

"Here. Eat this."

Blitzo caught the object in his working hand, and inspected it.

"I don't believe it?" he murmured in wonder. "A Gaman Pea?"

Mataro nodded.

"But...where did you get it?"

At this, Mataro let out a great booming laugh. "I grew it! I own the only Gaman plant in the entire world."

Rhuna raised one eyebrow. "You're a gardener?" she asked. Mataro grinned.

"Yep. I don't look like the type, do I? Now, eat up."

Rhuna and Blitzo both complied, Blitzo gasping at the weird sensation of his arm bones reconnecting.

"Amazing," said Rhuna. "I'm totally refreshed..." She looked up at Mataro. "How many of these things do you have?"

Mataro thought for a few seconds. "Only about twenty. They take a long time to grow."

Blitzo stood up. "You're a lot stronger than I expected."

"That's why it's me training you. Sorry about breaking your arm, by the way. I'll try to be more gentle until you get stronger."

Blitzo nodded, but then frowned. "How did Ferris get his then? If he hadn't of had the Gaman to give to me, Cuo would have killed us."

"Ferris? So, that was his name..."

"What do you mean?" asked Rhuna.

"About ten years ago, while I was out getting some sun, I came across a young boy, perhaps the same age Kenta is now. He was training hard, but was exhausted. Taking pity, I gave him a Gaman Pea on a whim, telling him only to use it when he knew the time was right. I'm guessing that the time came, then?"

Blitzo nodded sadly. "Yes. It certainly saved our lives."

Mataro bowed his head in respect, then straightened back up. "Enough talk. Let's continue."

**000**

Makurin wriggled slightly as he sat, cross-legged, with his eyes closed. Across from the Saiyan, in the same position, was Arasha, and to his right was Zeang.

Makurin wriggled again. He wasn't used to this type of training; meditating. Arasha had instructed both of her new students to sit down opposite her, and focus their ki. Zeang excelled at it. Makurin was much less patient.

They had been at it for an hour. Finally growing tired of sitting perfectly still for so long, Makurin lifted an eyelid, ever so slowly, and peeked around.

"Shut that eye."

Makurin flinched as if he had been struck, and closed his eye again.

"_How the hell did she know?" _he thought in awe.

"Something's on your mind, is it not?" asked Arasha, without opening her eyes. Beside Makurin, Zeang gave a low chuckle, but kept his shut as well. The alien knew of Makurin's general impatience. Annoyed, Makurin answered.

"Well, yes," answered the Saiyan. "I'm not exactly su-"

"Shut them."

"Sorry. Anyway, I'm not exactly sure how meditating is meant to make us stronger...how does this help?"

This time, Arasha did open her eyes, and gave a low murmur to allow the two to do so as well. Then, she gave a small sigh, and spoke.

"By meditating, and focussing your ki, you ensure that you have complete control. I find it essential to meditate before training."

Makurin scowled. "Are we going to do this every day?"

Arasha looked him right in the eye. "Yes."

Makurin was silent for a few moments, but then nodded reluctantly. "I guess. But I don't need to meditate that much; I already have great control over my energy."

"Oh, of course. You know best. Very well, then. Let's start!"

Arasha lifted a single arm and twisted her fingers into a claw. Makurin gasped as his skull tightened, and he felt like his brain was under enormous pressure. Arasha gave a cruel smile, and tightened the claw. As if in answer, the pressure grew even more.

"Help me," gasped Makurin to Zeang. Zeang shook his head.

"I have to agree with our teacher on this one, Makurin."

"Let me go!" the Saiyan shouted.

Arasha released the pressure on Makurin's mind. He gasped, and noticed the sweat pouring down his face after the attack.

"What was that for?" he snapped.

"Again, your Saiyan pride is taking over your common sense. Being powerful does not guarantee ki dominance. You must work for that. You will not be ready for any advanced training until you realise that fact. Until you master your ki, it will be impossible to defeat Denkuma. Even then, the odds are stacked in his favour."

Zeang looked at her. "Sorry for interrupting, but I have to ask; just how powerful is Denkuma, exactly? When we were fighting him, and when we were escaping, I could sense his presence, but not his energy. Why is that?"

Arasha sighed, but answered. "I do not like to discuss it, for it brings back cruel memories, but you must know. Denkuma is a demon of the worst kind. As such, he possesses certain...abilities, which give him several advantages over others. One of the abilities, as you mentioned, is that he can mask his exact power. Of course, the signatures of the Eternal Warriors are completely undetectable, but nevertheless, it is an advantage."

"What other abilities does he have?" asked Makurin. He was eager to know more about his enemy.

"Teleportation is one. Denkuma knows a technique called Instant Transmission, allowing him to move faster than it is possible; in other words, teleporting. Also, his status as a demon makes him particularly resistible to damage and pain, and he also has superb speed and bone-shattering physical strength. Add in his utter cruelty and total disregard for Havien life and you have the most horrifying creature imaginable."

"And our job is to kill him," muttered Makurin. "Where did he come from, anyway?"

"Denkuma arrived on Haven almost five centuries ago, and began wreaking havoc in search of the Dragon Balls. He was completely ruthless, and bought about the deaths of thousands, willing to do anything to get the Dragon Balls. The Slavoans of the time were numerous, but most of the population was wiped out by him, including the Slavoan King himself. Finally, the fighting came to a close when the great Namekian Azimuth fought Denkuma himself at great risk, for if Azimuth died then the Dragon Balls would be destroyed. That fight was terrifying; they wielded untold power. Eventually, Azimuth sealed Denkuma away in another dimension at the cost of his own life. He died a hero, but not before passing ownership of the Dragon Balls on to Hamasan."

Arasha's face creased, she looked like she was in pain. "And now Denkuma has escaped. The world is at risk once again."

**000**

Sweat poured down Kenta's back as he swung the heavy sword, slicing through the steel wall like it was butter, and then brought the weapon around and swung again. Sparks flew as the two metals impacted.

A week had passed since the group had taken refuge in Hamasan's Hall. In this time, Kenta had already gained enough strength to hold the heavy practice sword and swing it without any more effort than he would with a normal blade.

Breaking for a few minutes in his furious attack on the wall, Kenta heard footsteps behind him, and turned to see his sister standing behind him.

"Hey, Arnika," the young warrior said cheerfully, placing the sword on the ground. "What's up?"

Arnika gestured around the room. "Hamasan said I could come and give you a little encouragement."

In the past week, while the others had been training, Arnika had spent most of her time talking with Hamasan. She found the ancient Namekian incredibly interesting, and revelled in his company.

Suddenly, the side door of Geani's personal training room opened, and the swordmaster himself marched in. Like Kenta, he was dripping with sweat, though for a different reason.

"It is complete," he announced, holding Nenriki aloft. "Your sword has been reforged, and will survive tremendous impact. Try it out."

Kenta accepted the blue blade, and whipped it through the air a few times. The sword felt incredible, shining with a light that hadn't been there before.

"It's amazing," Kenta said, staring at the weapon in wonder.

"Wow, Geani," said Arnika, also amazed at Nenriki's upgrade. "Pass it here, Kenta."

"Actually, that wouldn't be a good idea," said Geani, but it was too late. Kenta passed Nenriki over to his sister, and the cavern was filled with a scream as she dropped it straight to the ground.

"Why's it so heavy?" Arnika cried.

Geani chuckled. "Unfortunately, the hardening of the blade involves the metal containing far more mass. It's just as heavy as all of the other swords. You've grown already, Kenta. Barely a week ago, you were struggling to lift my weapons at all. Now you can handle them quite easily."

Kenta grinned, looking at his hands. "I never would have thought that I'd be so strong."

Geani's grin faded. "Do not presume yourself to be indestructible. The war against Denkuma has only just begun. Already, he has begun to kill thousands of people in search of us; by the time we face him, there might not be anything left to fight for."

Arnika gulped. The storm had come...and they were right in the middle of it.

**000**

All in all, definitely not one of my best chapters. I feel as if the characters lost all of their personalities in this chapter. Maybe it's just me...or maybe it isn't. Tell me what you think :)

Sorry about the wait, by the way. Luckily, next week is the last week of term, so I'll update a lot more in the holidays.

Now, as I said a few lines above, this chapter was pretty bland. Don't worry, because the next chapter is gonna be chock-full of action. I've been waiting for the next chapter for a long time; it's gonna be a blast. See you then!


	16. Rise of the Crimson Archfiend

**Dragon Ball X**

Hey guys, it's me! Behold, the latest chapter!

Just one thing; last chapter, when Arasha was listing off Denkuma's powers, I missed out "matter materialisation". Denkuma, like Piccolo, can make objects appear out of nowhere. Also, he has telekinesis.

As I said last chapter, this one's set to be a good one. So, without further ado, I give you chapter 16 of Dragon Ball X! On with the chapter!

**000**

"_Nothing remains of Nao City but a pile of rubble. So far, no survivors have been found, but the rescue forces are still searching. The remaining authorities on Haven have announced that the mysterious Crimson Archfiend is behind the attack once again; it seems that he cannot be stopped. Time is short."_

Don sighed heavily, and dropped his head, keeping a moment's silence for the deceased civilians of Nao City. He knew exactly who the Crimson Archfiend was; Denkuma. Kenta, Arnika, Zeang, and the Saiyans had described him pretty well after their first encounter with the demon, and Don had absolutely no doubt at all that this...monster...was behind the destruction of the world.

Don was grief-stricken. It had been a full four months since his children and the aliens had left to find the last Dragon Ball. They had never come back. The inventor was consumed by guilt; it was he that had allowed Arnika to accompany the Saiyans and Kenta on their search. Now it seemed...she was dead. Don couldn't think of any other explanation for their continued absence, apart from that they were in hiding, but Don doubted that. Their high Power Levels would draw Denkuma like a magnet.

Slowly, Don raised his weary body out of his armchair, his bones and spirit screaming in protest. The man hadn't left the house in days. No one had. The entire world was living in constant fear of Denkuma, who came swiftly and left no survivors. Over two thirds of the population of Haven was dead; more than 7 billion people. A great percentage of the world was in ruin, destroyed by the evil demon.

With a small click, Don turned off the TV. Only one station was still running; a news channel that only still existed to inform the rest of the world about the deaths of others, and to remind everybody of their impending doom. Don turned his head to look at the mantelpiece of the living room of his giant house. On top were three orange balls, with differing amounts of stars on them. They were the three Dragon Balls that the Saiyans had managed to procure before disappearing. Don had realised a long time ago that Denkuma was searching for them. It certainly explained his sudden attack on the planet. He knew that the Dragon Balls were hidden somewhere, he just didn't know where. And with only a small number of cities remaining on Haven, it was only a matter of time before Don was found, and the Dragon Balls along with him.

At that moment, as Don laid his eyes on the Balls, there was a sound from the hallway, clear against the roaring rain outside. A long slow creaking sound. The un-oiled hinges of the front door. Someone else was in the house, and they had managed to destroy the lock with no apparent effort. Don made no sound. He knew who it was. He also knew that he had only seconds to act.

Moving swiftly for one so depressed, Don grabbed the rug from the floor, and threw it over the Dragon Balls, scooping them up into the blanket as if it were a bag. Then, he opened up a closet and stuffed the rug, with the Dragon Balls wrapped within, into the space, quietly shutting the closet door again. Then, he turned around and left the room, presenting himself to the intruder.

As Don entered the hallway, he saw the massive silhouette of the intruder. Lightning struck from the storm outside, lighting the figure up from the back. Don caught a glimpse of blood-red skin, and noticed a long writhing tail sprouting from the figure's lower back. The shadow was over two metres tall, contrasting with Don's small frame. The inventor was shorter than most people, but next to this figure he looked even smaller than normal.

"So," Don said quietly. "It's you."

Denkuma laughed, tilting his head to one side. "You've been expecting me, I see. How pleasant."

"What did you do to my children?" demanded Don.

"Oh, you can't possibly expect me to remember all of my victims!" Denkuma's voice was taunting and cruel. "There are _far _too many of them to single out any specifics. Now for the real reason I came here; tell me where the remaining Dragon Balls are."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh really?"

In a flash, Denkuma flew forward down the hall, grabbed Don by the throat, and then twisted around, slamming the scientist's body into the wall. Don grunted in pain, yet he knew that Denkuma wasn't using even one millionth of his power.

"_Tell me!"_

"Y-You'll never g-get them," gasped Don. "I won't let you."

Denkuma laughed; it chilled Don's bones. "And how exactly do you plan to stop me?"

The demon pulled Don back, and then threw him at the wall. Don smashed straight through the wood and plaster, sliding across the living room where he had recently sat in. Denkuma yelled through the hole in the wall.

"Don't you realise, pathetic Havien? I cannot be defeated! My power is too great! _I'm invincible!"_

Don was alive, but only just. The trip through the wall had broken a few of his ribs, and had given him a concussion. Blood dripped out of the scientist's nose, running down his face. A few metres away, Denkuma forced his way through the wall, and stood over the broken wreck that lay at his feet. The look on the demon's face had changed from feigning cheerfulness to immense rage. He reached down and pulled Don's shattered body up to eye level, holding the man by the collar of his shirt.

"For the last time, tell me where the Dragon Balls are."

Don's right eye flickered open, and he stared at Denkuma through the slit. The man's left eye was still shut. Amazingly, he smiled.

"Go ahead." Don's voice was little more than a croak. As he spoke, large amounts of blood streamed out of his mouth. "Kill me. If you do, you'll never find the Dragon Balls."

Denkuma didn't back down. "As you wish."

Don's eyes widened as he realised what he'd done. Denkuma didn't have any qualms; he threw Don to the ground and stomped on the back of his head. The man's skull was instantly crushed, and any last remains of life were extinguished. He was dead.

Denkuma straightened up, a horrid smile dancing on his awful features. The demon seemed to concentrate for a few seconds, and then turned to the closet. Grabbing the doorknob, he ripped it right off its hinges, and grabbed at the blanket sitting on the floor of the storage space inside. As Denkuma handled the cloth, the items that he sought tipped out the bottom; the monster caught them before they hit the floor.

Denkuma had claimed the three remaining Dragon Balls. Now only one was not in his possession. Turning, he looked down at Don's body.

"Sorry, my friend. I honestly do not know where your children are. But I'll find them...and then let them join you."

Thunder cracked, lightning flashed, and the rain continued to pour down. With an enormous boom, Denkuma exploded out of the top of the house, all three Dragon Balls held in one hand. Denkuma surveyed the city below, and extended his free hand.

"Now that all but one of the Dragon Balls are mine, I have no more need for the inhabitants of this pathetic planet. Prepare to die! Every last one of you! Demon Flash!"

A black beam riddled with white spots erupted from his hand, detonating as it hit the city below. As the buildings were destroyed and rubble flew into the air, obliterating any Havien within a five-kilometre radius, Denkuma let out a long loud laugh, revelling in his own power.

"And soon, Hamasan, I'll have the last Ball. Then...I'll be truly immortal. The reign of Denkuma will soon begin!"

**000**

Kenta flicked his sword down, but Geani's was already in the way, blocking it and twisting the blade to the side. Kenta backtracked, taking a few steps backwards in order to get some room, before going on the offensive again. No matter what he tried, Geani was faster, and always intercepted his attacks. Finally, their swords locked together, and the Ageless Fighter shoved Kenta back.

"That's enough!" called Geani, reversing his sword so that he was leaning on it, the point stabbing into the hard rock that was the ground.

In the four months that the Saiyans, Zeang, Kenta, and Arnika had been under the Eternal Warrior's tutelage, they had all advanced at tremendous speed. All three Saiyans could now compete directly with Mataro and Arasha, though Geani was still too fast. Meanwhile, Kenta had grown tremendously, his sword skills developing past any set standards. Zeang's mind powers were stronger than ever, and he could easily incapacitate the Saiyans without trying. The Eternal Warriors were a different matter, however, and could shrug off most of his mental attacks, albeit with great effort.

Even Arnika had learnt new skills. Her long hours of chatting with Hamasan had not only taught her to sense energy, but to fly as well. She returned the favour by keeping the old Namekian company; he found the young girl incredibly exuberant and full of life.

"Can't we keep going?" asked Kenta, grinning.

Geani smiled as well. "If you insist." In a blaze of speed he lifted his sword, and struck at Kenta three times at great speed. Kenta only just blocked the first two and had to duck under the third stroke. Then, before he knew it, Geani smashed their swords together again, before forcing Kenta's around in a circle. Kenta lost his grip, and the sword flashed across the training hall, embedding itself in the wall. Geani placed his blade at Kenta's neck.

"Hmm...More training is in order, I think. But not now; the others are waiting for us."

Geani slid his sword into the scabbard strapped to his belt, and gestured to the wooden door. Kenta nodded in thanks, and led the way down the tunnel into the main chamber, Geani strolling less than a metre behind him. Eventually, the tunnel widened, and they could walk side-by-side.

"Man, you're fast," complimented Kenta. It always amazed him at the reflexes and all-around speed that his master possessed.

"I thank you. With practice, you'll soon reach the same level."

Kenta gave a short bark of laughter, as the pair of them rounded a final corner into the main chamber, exiting from a door to the side of Hamasan's throne. Despite Geani saying that everybody was waiting for them, the chamber was deserted. "That'll be a good day. You know, I-"

It struck Kenta like a bomb, cutting off his speech. A sick feeling, throughout his entire body, invading his thoughts, stopping his brain. It was as if a part of him had suddenly disappeared. And in a way, it had.

"N-no..." whispered Kenta, sinking to his knees. Geani looked alarmed.

"Kenta, what's wrong."

"No," murmured Kenta again, and then screamed it at the top of his voice, anguish permeating throughout his voice. "NOOO! YOU BASTARD!"

"Kenta, you have to tell me what is wrong!" shouted Geani, squatting down to Kenta's level. Still, the Havien didn't answer. Instead, a stream of tears ran down his cheeks.

"D-Dad...no..."

Geani was silent. He knew what was affecting Kenta. Denkuma had finally discovered the boy's father. Don wouldn't have stood a chance.

Suddenly, the tears stopped, and Kenta raised his head, anger stitched across his face. You could almost smell it. Immense rage, leaking out of the young boy. Kenta stood, hunched over slightly as he focussed his rage.

"Kenta, you have to calm down!"

"Why should I?" snapped Kenta. His energy levels were rising uncontrollably, and he was surrounded by a white aura. "That bastard killed my father! I'll kill him!"

"Kenta, calm down _right now!"_

The ground was beginning to shake as Kenta grew more and more angry, raising his Power Level to enormous heights. It was higher than it had ever been before. Above them, the stone roof began to crack, and a large chunk of rock crumbled to the ground. From the side doors, Mataro and Arasha ran in, closely followed by the Saiyans and Zeang. All of them were sweating from their training.

"Kenta..." Geani's voice was quavering. He was visibly frightened by Kenta's rage. "I understand that you're angry, but if you don't stop this, you'll destroy yourself!"

"I DON'T CARE!" roared Kenta, and exploded into the air, rocketing towards the large steel door that marked the exit to the outside world. "I'LL KILL HIM!"

Mataro bounded forwards, chasing after the young Havien. Catching up just before Kenta reached the door, Mataro reached out and grabbed his ankle, before digging his heels into the ground, to act as anchors. Despite this, Kenta kept going, and Mataro's eyes widened as he was somehow dragged closer to the door, his sunken heels digging a track in the stone.

"Let me go!" screamed Kenta. Mataro gasped; Kenta's rage was feeding him power.

"Kenta! Stop!"

The clear voice finally penetrated the barrier around Kenta's mind as nothing else had. The voice of his sister. Dropping to the ground, Kenta sunk to his knees once more, but turned his head to look back.

Geani and Arasha both had expressions of extreme pity on their faces, and the Saiyans and Zeang had looks of confusion. But none of them mattered; all that did was the face of Arnika. She was crying; obviously she too had felt the death of their father. What amazed Kenta was her self-control.

"Please Kenta...y-you have to stop this. It won't help Dad if you get killed. Denkuma will enjoy it. You have to stay here. Please, don't leave me too."

Kenta, his head bowed and body shivering in distress, ran over and wrapped his arms around Arnika. And there they stood, weeping together.

**000**

"We've been hiding away far too long. It's time that we emerge from our isolation, and fight Denkuma head on."

Geani finished speaking. The swordmaster, along with the rest of the Eternal Warriors, except for Korros, were standing in a line facing Hamasan, who was sitting in his throne. Hamasan's face was sorrowful. To the side stood the Saiyans and Zeang, and next to them sat Kenta and Arnika. By now, Kenta had calmed down, but Arnika was still crying silently. The loss of her father had hit her harder than anything she would have thought possible.

"I agree too, Master," piped up Mataro, stepping forwards.

"And I," said Arasha.

The elderly Namekian closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. "You are right. Our fear has kept us hidden for a while, but after so long I've grown weary of it. But, I fear I cannot join you in the battle ahead; my body is too frail, I will not last long against the Devil's might. He is too powerful for me. You must go on alone."

Geani bowed his head in acceptance. "We understand. It has been an honour to know you and train under you for so long, my Master. We will leave within the hour. Let us begin preparations."

"Wait," said Hamasan. He looked Geani directly in the eye, but suddenly, his gaze shifted to look at Blitzo instead. "I'm feeling something..."

Without warning, Hamasan spoke:

"The events of the past shall re-occur,

History shall repeat itself,

And Haven will find peace."

Blitzo was confused, not to mention all of the others. "What was that?" he asked.

"A premonition," answered Arasha. "Hamasan saw what is yet to come. But does it bode well, or ill, Master?"

Hamasan shook his head, eyes closed. "I don't know. Peace could mean anything - the destruction of Denkuma, the extermination of Haviens – it's impossible to tell."

"Enough of this," stated Geani. "We must prepare."

**000**

Mataro straightened up, tying the small bag of Gaman Peas that he had grown with a small string. The group would need them if they were to have any hope of killing the beast.

Within minutes, the heavily-muscled man joined his companions, Geani and Arasha, in the main hall, and together the three of them instructed their students. Arnika also joined the group. Mataro passed a single Pea to everybody present.

Take these. Use them sparingly, there are not many left."

After all of the Peas had been stowed away in clothes, Geani began the briefing.

"Denkuma, conceited as he is, has taken Mt. Fowl, the tallest mountain on Haven, as his place of rest. We can sense his presence there. According to the Dragon Radar, the other six Dragon Balls are also located at Mt. Fowl."

Mataro took over from Geani. "We have a plan, or a strategy, or whatever you want to call it. The eight of us – Geani, Arasha, Makurin, Rhuna, Blitzo, Zeang, and myself - fly to Mt Fowl, and engage Denkuma in battle. While he's distracted, one of us will have to locate the Dragon Balls and bring them back here while the others distract Denkuma. When all seven are gathered, Hamasan can summon the Dragon and bring back everybody who has been killed by Denkuma."

"How many people is that?" asked Blitzo. "How many has he killed?"

No one answered. Eventually, Geani spoke up. "Most of the population of the world. Over the four months that we've been training you, Denkuma has been destroying Haven without mercy. I must warn all of you; there is a very high chance that we will be defeated and killed. Denkuma holds most of the advantages. We only have one; surprise."

"Is everybody prepared?" asked Arasha. "This will be a fight to the death."

Everybody nodded. Suddenly, Arnika spoke. "I want to come too."

"What? Are you _crazy?" _gasped Kenta. "No way!"

Arnika's eyes flashed. "Listen to me! All of you will be needed to fight Denkuma; while you're fighting, I can look for the Dragon Balls, and then escape."

"The girl's right," said Arasha.

"_No," _hissed Kenta, grabbing Arnika by the shoulders, forcing her to look at him. "Don't you understand? I can't lose you; you're the only family I have left!" Kenta closed his eyes, and a single tear trickled down his cheek. "I don't know what I'd do if I was on my own. I'd be lost."

Arnika reached up, and wiped his tear away. "I have to do my part to save Dad. I don't want to be worthless anymore. I don't want to be the little girl that gets in the way! I want to help. Please, let me."

"She has to help, Kenta." Geani's voice was gentle, but stern. "We're all needed to fight Denkuma. Arnika can slip away and find the Balls, and then get away while we're battling that demon."

Kenta was silent, visibly fighting his emotions.

"Fine," he said eventually. "You can come."

On the other side of the chamber, sitting upon his chair, Hamasan watched closely. He understood the struggle that Kenta had just gone through, but respected him all the more because of his decision. Suddenly, a hard, rough voice rang throughout the chamber.

"You are all kidding yourselves. Denkuma is beyond us."

Korros was standing to the side, having slipped in through a side door. The tall Namekian fighter surveyed them all, his green arms crossed under his white robe.

"We must fight back, Korros," called Mataro. "You might have given up hope, but we will carry on, even if it kills us."

Korros turned around, to walk back through the door he had come through. "Very well. Fight bravely, my friends, but it is futile."

And with that final comment, Korros was gone. Geani sighed. "I had hoped that he would join us in the final battle. I can see that was a false hope. Now, we march to war; to death and glory. Let us go."

Hamasan watched as the Eternal Warriors, accompanied by the Saiyans, Kenta, Zeang, and Arnika, flew into the air, and zoomed through the large steel door, to the wilderness beyond. Mt. Fowl was on the other side of Haven, it would take at least six hours to reach it at full speed.

"Good luck, my students. I await your return."

**000**

Mt. Fowl was huge. There was no other word for it, apart from perhaps "enormous", or "gargantuan". There was a reason that it was called the largest mountain on Haven. Interestingly, it wasn't actually a mountain, but an extinct volcano. The lava and magma inside had long since cooled and hardened, transforming the deadly structure into a seemingly ordinary tourist attraction.

Mt. Fowl had come into sight over an hour ago, and loomed larger every second. Ten kilometres high, it stood out for miles. Due to the tremendous height, most of the mountain was covered in ice. Far from lending the landmark a jolly feel, an aroma of death surrounded the volcano.

As quickly and quietly as shadows, the small group of warriors landed on the side of the mountain, a mere kilometre from the summit. In front of them, carved into the ice and rock, was an enormous stone archway, leading into a maze of tunnels that twisted through Mt. Fowl like a web of veins and arteries in a Havien body.

Geani was on alert. "Be as silent as possible, and whatever you do, keep your energy levels suppressed to the minimum. If Denkuma so much as senses a flicker of life, we're all doomed." He frowned. "I can't feel him now; with luck, he won't be anywhere near here. Arnika, where's the Dragon Ball?"

The small girl tugged the Radar out of a pocket, and peered at the screen. It was blank.

"What the – the Radar's not working! All of the moisture up here in the air must have short-circuited it.

"That's not good. What do we do now? Without the Radar, we don't have a clue where the Ball is." asked Rhuna.

The swordmaster glanced around, leering into the archway at the tunnels.

"You all go in. Split into pairs, and search for it manually. Blitzo and Makurin, Rhuna and Kenta, Arnika and Mataro, Zeang and Arasha."

"What about you?" asked Arnika. She was shivering, the only one affected by the cold.

Geani squared his jaw, determined. "I'm going up top, to the crater. There's something very wrong around here; I'm going to find out what. Let's roll out."

The fighters all obliged, separating into their groups and travelling down different tunnels. Meanwhile, Geani hovered into the air. He was wearing his standard weapons; a massive broadsword on his back, and two belts. One had two curved swords, the other was covered in knives.

With a small whoosh, Geani flew over the lip of the crater, and dropped to the ground. The sight that met his eyes stopped him in his tracks.

Bodies. Corpses. Skeletons.

The volcano was full of them. Hundreds of thousands of dead Haviens, in various stages of decomposition. Men, women, and children alike, all of them dead. Wide eyes, glassy and hazed, stared up at Geani as he struggled to comprehend what he was seeing. The smell alone was revolting, though was subdued by the cold. Nevertheless, Geani – a hardened warrior who had seen countless deaths – almost vomited. It was too much.

He didn't know how long he stood there in silence, gazing upon the bodies of his fellows, mourning their loss. Slowly, his shock was replaced by anger, but then that faded to be replaced by guilt. How could he have let this happen?

"Spectacular, isn't it? Truly remarkable. All of my victims. Well, at least the ones that weren't disintegrated."

Denkuma's low gravelly voice came from a point slightly behind and to the right of Geani. Neither even thought of attacking the other. Geani didn't even look around, but continued staring into the crater, at the decaying remains of thousands of Havien civilians.

"It's despicable," answered Geani. The anger was back, as well as a dreadful lust for revenge. "I wouldn't have thought that even someone as vile as you could sink to this depth."

"And yet...I did."

"What was the point of this? What could you stand to gain from slaughtering all the Haviens?" Despite his incredible self-control, Geani was growing closer to giving in to his anger. "What's the point of ruling a planet if there's no one to rule it over?"

Denkuma answered, and Geani could almost imagine the cruel smile on the demon's face. "How narrow-minded you are. My intentions are not to rule Haven; my boundaries have no limit! Once I make my wish on the Dragon Balls and become immortal, I'll reign over the entire universe!"

"The...universe?"

"Of course. Naturally, I had to be sure that I would be able to go through with the slaughter of trillions, so I conducted this little experiment, to see if I had what it took. And I did, Geani. I did."

Geani couldn't control it any longer. "You will join your victims soon, Devil."

Denkuma's only response was to laugh. Softly at first, but within seconds the awful sound grew louder, penetrating the thick, cold air surrounding Mt. Fowl.

"Is that so, Slavoan scum?"

Geani bared his teeth in anger. "_That's right!" _he roared, and spun around to face the Crimson Archfiend, broadsword leaping from the scabbard on his back to his hand. With a coarse war cry, Geani whipped the sword through the air as if it weighed less than a feather, and the blade flew in a horizontal arc, ready to slice Denkuma in two. But it was too late.

With a savage hiss, Denkuma summoned a rich purple sword with a black hilt into his fingers, and effortlessly blocked Geani's stroke, holding the deadly weapon in one hand. Black energy crackled around them as the blades met, a shattering screech ringing through the air. Geani found himself face to face with a creature of nightmares, one who would strike him down without hesitation. The face was grinning, and the voice spoke once more.

"Let us begin, Geani; for death or glory!"

**000**

Well, I hope you like it. I haven't checked it for mistakes, so if you see any, be sure to let me know. Too bad about Don at the start, eh? I hope that I portrayed Kenta and Arnika's grief well.

Funny story, actually; I was planning on finishing this chapter last Thursday night, since I was going camping for six days, leaving on Friday morning. Unfortunately, I didn't finish it, so I had to delay the update until now, on Wednesday night. Shame, that; oh well. I'm on holidays now, so I've got two weeks off.

Next time, on Dragon Ball X, Geani and Denkuma clash in a thrilling battle of epic proportions. Can the swordmaster really defeat this creature of evil? Will the other Eternal Warriors sense the struggle and rush to Geani's aid in time? And will our heroes locate the six stolen Dragon Balls? Find out next time, on Dragon Ball X!


	17. Battle Atop Mt Fowl

**Dragon Ball X**

Hello...it is me.

Now, the holidays have begun. Hopefully, I'll get at least two chapters of this done, and about 2-3 of my AA rewrite before the end, but I'm suffering a bit from Writer's Block, so don't count on it. Not to mention the fact that I'm a procrastinator to the point of ridiculousness.

On with the chapter!

**000**

Geani's eyes were furious, blazing with an intense fire as he stared in Denkuma's. Between them, their swords were locked together, one of them a dull silver, the other a deep purple.

The two warriors stood teetering on the edge of Mt Fowl's crater, ten kilometres high. Snow whipped around them in a fierce storm, and the clouds, only a few hundred metres above, were boiling and dark.

Denkuma pushed Geani back a bit, gaining leverage in the struggle to overcome the other. Leering evilly at the Ageless Fighter, he poked his head forward until his face was right next to Geani's. The demon's bulging yellow eyes were wide.

"You can't win this struggle, my old friend. I'm superior to you in every way."

Geani's only answer was to step to the side. Denkuma, leaning heavily forward, was taken by surprise as the resistance disappeared, and stumbled past Geani, who twisted, attempting to drive his sword into Denkuma exposed side.

The sword hummed through the air, and was within centimetres of plunging into the demon when he ducked, avoiding the attack. Low to the ground, Denkuma swung his lower body around, holding himself up with his hands, and knocked Geani's leg from under him, then pushed himself back to his feet.

Geani rolled away, spinning and spinning along the cold ground until he was several metres from the horrifying creature. His broadsword was held close to his body, preventing him from accidently impaling himself on his own weapon. A safe distance away, he jumped to his feet.

Denkuma was stationary, and the two swordsmen went back to staring each other down, only this time from a distance. Denkuma dipped his head, and Geani grimaced as he heard a low chuckle.

"Is that the best you can do?"

With a flash, the Archfiend covered the distance between the two, and savagely smashed his sword into Geani's knocking the man over the edge of the crater, into the howling wind. Geani yelled as he flew through the air, but recovered, and hovered over the millions of rotting corpses below. Denkuma watched him from the ice on the lip of the crater, his purple sword emanating death.

Geani reached for his lower belt, and his trained hands wrapped around to his back. A few seconds later, the knife-covered belt was free, and Geani threw it into the crater. Denkuma watched it fall, and grinned up at Geani.

"Wise move, Slavoan. That thing would only weigh you down."

Far below, the belt smashed into the bodies, crushing the skull of a limbless corpse. All of the knives on the belt were specially made to be incredibly hard, and due to this were all extremely heavy. The combined weight of the blades added up to almost a tonne. Without it, Geani was much more agile and free to move. He waited, broadsword held above his head, trying to anticipate Denkuma's attack.

What the demon did was completely unexpected. Melting into smoke, his sword dematerialised, and he placed two fingers on his forehead.

"_Move!"_

Every one of Geani's sense screamed to him at once, but they weren't fast enough. Denkuma vanished into thin air, and as if in slow motion, Geani turned in mid-air just in time to see him reappear. Denkuma laced his long fingers into one another, ending up with his hands locked together. The double fist served the same purpose as a hammer, and Denkuma raised his arms above his head, bringing them down hard on top of Geani's skull.

Geani shouted in pain as he was struck on the head, and was hurled directly downwards, moving far too fast to stop. The wind whipped past him, and the tiny particles of snow flying through the drove into his unprotected skin like nails. He struggled to hold onto the hilt of his sword, refusing to let go. Finally, Geani collided with the top of the mound of bodies, impacting with the force of more than twenty trains.

**000**

Arnika and Mataro dashed down the tunnels, feet padding into the snowy floor. The inside of Mt Fowl was a maze; various shafts ran in all directions, and every fifty feet or so was another tunnel. Some of them descended lower into the ground, and some of them went higher. And without the Dragon Radar, it was proving very difficult to find any of the Dragon Balls.

Together, they rounded a corner, and Mataro skidded to a halt, something catching his eye. Fixed into the upper corner of the tunnel. There it was!

"Look!" he shouted, and then flew up to the roof, grabbing at the Dragon Ball frozen into the rock. With a single punch, he shattered the rock surrounding it and freed the Ball. The small orange sphere sparkled to the ground, where Arnika caught it. It was the Four-Star Ball.

"There's one," she stated. "But where are the others?"

Mataro descended back down to the ground. "I was afraid of this. As a safety precaution, Denkuma must have scattered all six of his Dragon Balls throughout Mt. Fowl."

Arnika's genius mind figured it out instantly, although this didn't make it any less terrifying. "By the time someone locates all of them, Denkuma would have found and killed them."

Mataro nodded gravely, his usual liveliness sadly lacking. "Exactly."

The sound of voices reached their ears, and out of a nearby tunnel ran Rhuna and Kenta. Spotting Mataro and Arnika, they joined them.

Kenta held up his hands, and seven stars winked up at them out of one hand, and three out of the other.

"We got two Dragon Balls, but couldn't find any others."

Arnika showed them the Four-Star Ball. "Denkuma's hidden them all over the mountain."

"That complicates things," said Rhuna. "We have to spli-"

BOOM!

The Saiyan girl was cut off by an ear-shattering crash, and the entire tunnel shook. Overhead, a chunk of ice broke loose and fell, narrowly missing Kenta. The rumbling continued for another ten seconds, then faded away, but the damage was done. Half of the tunnel had crumbled and been destroyed.

"What was that?" shouted Arnika, as she was pulled back to her feet by Rhuna.

Mataro was staring at the ceiling. "It means that the battle has begun. Geani's fighting Denkuma, and is extreme danger; we all are. At this magnitude of power the entire mountain could collapse. We have to get out of these tunnels right now!"

"But the Dragon Balls!" answered Arnika. "If we leave now then they'll be lost under the rubble!"

Mataro grimaced, and everybody could tell that he was thinking furiously, trying to come up with a plan. Finally, he reached a decision. "OK. We have to find the others. Arasha, Blitzo, Makurin, and Zeang. With luck, they'll have found the other Balls."

The four of them hovered into the air, and took off through the tunnels, zooming along as fast they could while navigating the tunnels.

"_Hold in there, Geani," _thought Mataro. "_Don't show that bastard any mercy,"_

**000**

The bastard in question waited patiently, slowly descending and staring down at the hole caused by Geani crashing through the pile of corpses. Denkuma sneered cruelly; it had been immensely satisfying to smash his hated enemy. The shockwave of Geani hitting the decaying carcasses had rocked the very mountain itself, causing several landslides to crumble down into the crater.

Denkuma tilted his head; he could hear something. Yelling. Suddenly, Geani erupted out of the pile, sword savagely hissing through the snow in the air, and the Ageless Warrior hurtled up towards the demon, screaming in anger. Denkuma gasped; he wasn't expecting this. Before he knew it, Geani was right in front of him, stabbing out with his broadsword, and Denkuma had barely enough time to form his own and block.

Geani was lightning fast, slashing and cutting, and sparks flew from the two combatants' swords. The blades were just blurs in the air as they struck, again and again, and Denkuma grunted under the assault.

Finally, the two swords locked in the air, and the owners glared at each other, each wishing the other a painful death.

"You can't win," grunted Denkuma, but to his unwanted surprise, a single bead of sweat ran down his own face. Geani saw it, and smiled.

"Getting a little too fast for you?"

"Silence, imbecile!" roared Denkuma. "I'll be the end of you!"

He pulled his sword out of the lock, and swung it furiously, clanging the metal against Geani's. Before Denkuma knew it, the Eternal Warrior darted to the side and flicked his sword out. The very tip of the blade hissed past Denkuma's face, and slashed into his forehead. Rivers of black blood coursed down the demon's face, and he grasped at his head in horror. Peeling his palm away from his bleeding forehead, he stared at the blood smeared on his hand, and then at Geani, who was looking at him stone-faced.

"Y-you actually cut me," spluttered Denkuma, and then was practically smothered by rage. "HOW _DARE_ YOU BEFILE MY BODY! I'LL KILL YOU!"

Geani withdrew under a furious assault, frantically blocking as Denkuma's power grew even higher. The purple blade was actually glowing, and then suddenly burst into black flames. Denkuma roared in a furious climax, and his flaming blade shore straight through Geani's.

The Eternal Warrior gasped as his only defence was lopped in half, and watched in horror as his silver blade span through the air, falling the short distance to the deceased below. In their fight, they had flown lower and lower; they were now only a hundred metres above the pile. The rotting faces stared up at them , and with their unblinking eyes it was as if the victims of Denkuma were actually watching the epic battle between the swordsmen.

Denkuma raised his sword high above his head, preparing for the killing stroke. Geani, however remained calm, and took the only option available to him. Lunging up, he flipped upside down and kicked the sword right out of the demon's hands. Denkuma shrieked in rage, and punched Geani savagely in the stomach, knocking the Ageless Warrior several metres through the air.

Wheeling wildly, Geani righted himself to a horrible sight; Denkuma thrust his arm into the air and caught the purple shadow sword as it fell, and then launched his crimson body through the air towards Geani, who was defenceless. Well...almost defenceless.

With two blinding flashes, Geani unsheathed the two curved swords hanging from his upper belt, and reversed his grip on them so that they were the right way up. Then, he crossed them together in an X shape, just in time to catch Denkuma's strike between the two smaller blades. A ringing crash echoed through the crater, but Geani held on.

Unfortunately, Denkuma's flight through the air carried a lot of momentum, and the two of them were forced backwards, heading straight for the canyon wall. Denkuma was grunting with the effort to keep Geani going, and Geani braced himself for impact...

**000**

Turning the last corner, the small group of four – Mataro, Rhuna, Kenta, and Arnika – found themselves in a wide corridor, stretching for several hundred metres in a long curve.

"This is it," said Mataro. "We're right on the other side of the crater. I can sense the others ahead; let's go."

The four of them zoomed through the air a bit, and suddenly, they were all reunited. Arasha, Zeang, Blitzo, and Makurin came into sight, and they all stopped just in time to not crash into each other.

"Thank the Kai's you're here!" exclaimed Arasha. "We've found two Dragon Balls between us, but we have no idea where the others are."

"Right here," answered Arnika, holding up the three that she held. "We're only missing one."

"Damn it!" shouted Blitzo, punching the wall. "We're so close!"

The punch broke away some of the snow in the wall, and Blitzo spotted a gleam.

"It's here! I've found it," he cried, and pulled the Ball out of the wall. "Talk about a coincidence."

Zeang stepped forwards. "Do you all know what this means. With the Six-Star Ball back at the Hall of Hamasan, we've got all seven. We can wish everybody back at last!"

Arasha nodded. "Indeed. Now, we must leave here at once, else we risk being crushed if the mountain collapses. Let us leave now!"

Mataro held up a hand, and glanced at the curved wall that separated them from the crater. "Wait..." Suddenly, his eyes widened. "DUCK!"

All eight of them dropped to the ground, as the wall literally exploded. Snow and dirt flew everywhere, covering them all, as Geani erupted through the wall, holding off an enraged Denkuma. Geani's broadsword was missing; he was fighting the enemy with his curved swords, held in an X shape. Denkuma's massive purple weapon was caught in the middle of the X, and the two were grappling wildly.

Mataro sprung into action instantly, zooming forward and delivering a massive kick to Denkuma's jaw. The Devil spun away, back out of the tunnel and into the crater. Mataro and Arasha went to fly after him, but Geani stopped them.

"Don't...he'll cut you in half with that sword. I'm the only one who can fight him at the moment."

"You can't, you're not strong enough!" shouted Mataro. "Do you want to get killed?"

Geani ignored him, and hurtled out of the tunnel, slashing at Denkuma with his two swords. Mataro and Arasha turned to the others.

"Listen," said Mataro. "All of you. Leave now; get back to Hamasan and summon the Dragon. We'll hold off Denkuma as long as we can."

Blitzo shook his head. "No, we won't. A Saiyan never runs away from a fight. We won't give in!"

Mataro backhanded him across the cheek, sending Blitzo sprawling. "Leave right now, Saiyan! I'm warning you! If Denkuma kills us, he'll come straight after you, to get the Dragon Balls back. You need to be fresh to fight him then, now go!"

Blitzo climbed gingerly back to his feet. He saw the truth in Mataro's words, but didn't want to follow his trainer's instructions. Finally, he submitted.

"Alright. I'll go. Just-just don't die." The three Saiyans, as well as Kenta, Zeang, and Arnika, flew into the crater, sticking to the wall so that Denkuma wouldn't see them. Below were the corpses; Arnika vomited in mid-flight, but kept on going. Above them, Geani and Denkuma were still duelling in the sky, moving like blurs, rising higher and higher. Mataro and Arnika flew up, but were forced to hover and watch; they couldn't interfere without being sliced open.

**000**

Out of the corner of his eye, Geani saw the Saiyan's and their friends breach the top of the mountain and fly away, and knew instinctively that the Dragon Balls were with them. He grinned to himself, and shouted across to Denkuma.

"It's over! My comrades have got the Dragon Balls, it's all over."

Denkuma darted back, out of reach of Geani's swords, and grinned sadistically. Geani was grateful for the respite; he was exhausted. Denkuma, on the other hand, never seemed to tire; he just kept on going and going. The two of them were once again level with the top of the mountain; their struggle had carried them high.

"It's not over yet, my old friend. Once you're dead, I'll kill them too, and claim immortality for myself."

The demon launched forwards, and swung his blade down. Geani blocked just in time, but buckled under the force of the blow. Suddenly, Denkuma performed a sidestroke, and battered Geani's swords out of the way. Geani gasped as he was knocked around, so that his back was to Denkuma. Behind him, the demon grinned a final time, and stabbed out at Geani's unprotected back.

Silence filled the air.

Geani felt odd. His entire body had gone numb, and as he lowered his head he saw why. A purple blade protruded from his chest, spearing straight through the leather armour like it was made of paper. There was a strange red liquid coating the blade, and Geani realised with a jolt that it was his own blood. It sparkled as he looked at it, the light from above the crater glistening on his liquid life-force. He felt cold, and a single tear trickled down his cheek.

Dully, the swordmaster felt something hard pushing onto his lower back, as Denkuma used his clawed foot to tug his sword out of Geani's body. As it exited, Geani gasped. Without the weapon blocking the hole, blood began to pour in rivers down his chest and stomach, and his strength faded like smoke on the wind. Slowly, Geani began to descend, losing the ability to hold himself up any more. With a great effort, he turned his head, spotting both Mataro and Arasha staring wide-eyed in shock, unable to believe what had happened. Geani smiled sadly at them. The act used up the last of his energy, and he fell to the ground, so far below.

Seconds later, he impacted, and the shadows that had been lingering on the edge of his vision filled his line of sight, until he could see no more. Sighing, Geani let go off life, and passed into the void.

**000**

And so, Geani lost the battle. Sad, isn't it? That's my first death scene where I've written it in the eyes of the character; I hope I did a good job. Haven't had time to check it either, so there might be a few mistakes.

Sorry this chapter is rather short, by the way. Only 3000 words. I didn't actually plan for it to end here, but the fight was a lot longer than I originally planned, and I thought that I wouldn't be able to fit the rest of the events in this chapter into it, so I decided to end it here, with a rather shocking plot twist, if I do say so myself.

Stay tuned.


	18. Fallen Comrades

**Dragon Ball X**

Konichiwa, tomodachi's. Pleased to see you all. Guess what? I'm back! HAHA! And may I wish you all a very Happy Easter. To celebrate, this is the Super Easter Happy Fun Special, featuring a few people desperately fighting off a pure evil demon, after witnessing their friend of five hundred years die. Isn't that so Super and Happy and Fun? But can they win? Read on, tomodachi's.

**000**

Mataro watched on in horror as Geani landed. Emotions completely overtook him, paralysing the Ageless Fighter. He could barely breathe, overcome by a combination of grief, anger, and a terrible sense of loss. It pressed down on him, suffocating him. Geani, dead? That was impossible. Geani had always been in charge, completely level-headed, a natural leader. For five hundred years, he had kept the morale of the others high, never giving up, and never showing fear.

And now he was gone. This fact surrounded Mataro, blocking everything out. His vision went dark, until the only thing remaining was Geani's lifeless body. Blood seeped from his wound, heavily staining the bones and dead flesh of the mountain of corpses that was his resting place.

Denkuma straightened up, a sadistic smile covering his face. With a flash, his sword disappeared, melting into thin air. Beyond him, both of Geani's partners hovered in horror, unable to comprehend the event that had just occurred. Denkuma smiled even wider. What a perfect to opportunity to lower the morale, make it even easier to defeat the others.

"How weak he was," declared the demon, looking down at Geani's body. "Not worthy of his title."

No one answered, although Arasha turned her gaze on him, murderous expression on her face. Mataro continued staring at Geani's corpse.

"I wonder if he knew that he never stood a chance," pondered Denkuma, deliberately driving an emotional spear into Geani's companions. If he could destroy them from within, victory would be as simple as striking them down where they stood.

Arasha finally answered him. "You are wrong, Death-Bringer. Geani was a noble man, the strongest among us. He never failed."

"Of course he did! He couldn't even stop me...he was worthless, and so are both of you. Why don't you just give in now...?"

The Devil moved faster than the eye could see, shooting through the air, less than a metre away from Mataro, his arm held up in preparation to strike. Mataro didn't move, still encompassed by grief. Denkuma smiled, and brought his hand down, cracking Mataro in the back. The Eternal Warrior cried in pain, awakened from his mental stupor. As he flew through the air, Arasha jumped in front and caught him.

"Don't give in," she said gently. "We will win this for Geani, and avenge his death."

Mataro nodded stoically, and prised himself from Arasha's grip, turning and facing his hated enemy, who spread his arms to either side.

"Just try and stop me! Soon the entire universe will be crushed in my fist! I will become invincible, and I won't let the likes of you get in my way!"

Mataro snarled fiercely. "You'll pay for this!" he roared, and shot through the air towards Denkuma, who was caught off-guard. Mataro's fist struck him in the cheekbone, and the demon's head was knocked to the side. Mataro followed up with a massive slug in the gut.

Denkuma's eyes flashed, and Mataro was assaulted by a foul gust of wind, being blown backwards through the air. As he halted his trajectory, the Ageless Fighter formed a ball of ki in his hands and hurled it at Denkuma. The demon caught the ball, but it forced him backwards as he struggled to hold the ki at bay. Finally, he threw it over his head, where it crashed into the wall. Rubble plummeted to the ground.

Denkuma charged up his own attack. "You're not the only one that can do that," he announced, and threw his own ball at Mataro, who wasn't strong enough to hold it back like Denkuma could. It exploded, and he screamed in pain.

Denkuma created another, but before he could throw it, a foot came out of nowhere and struck him in the back. "Argh," he grunted. "Arasha!"

"That's right!"

Denkuma swung around, launching a kick. It hit Arasha in the side, but she managed to grab the foot, and swing Denkuma around a few times, before letting him go. The throw didn't seem to affect Denkuma that much; he looped around in midair and charged at the Slavoan woman, tackling her out of the air. The two mortal enemies rolled in the air, punching and kicking savagely, blocking the others attacks as they did so.

Suddenly, Mataro joined the fight. Flying over, he performed a flip to gain momentum, and then kicked down, sending Denkuma plummeting to the corpses below.

"Stew in them, Denkuma" yelled Mataro. Denkuma snarled as he climbed to his feet, then reached down and grabbed a few bodies from the pile. Roaring in anger, he hurled the rotting carcasses at the two fighters above.

"Look out!" shouted Mataro, pushing Arasha out of the way. Unfortunately, this forfeited his only chance of defending himself, and was hit by the first corpse. It splattered when it hit him, clotted blood spraying in all directions. Mataro gasped, shocked by the grossness of the projectile. A split second later, he was hit by the second corpse.

"Stop that right now!" Mataro yelled, shooting several ki blasts at the ground where Denkuma stood. The demon deflected all of them with his bare hands, and then rocketed into the air towards his foes. They were prepared, but unable to withstand his assault. Twisting as he drew closer to them, Denkuma lunged out with both hands and legs, kicking Mataro and punching Arasha at the same time. They were both knocked away, as Denkuma flipped back around.

Arasha held out her hands. "Stand back," she said, and extended her arms in front of her. Mataro quickly flew several metres back, as Arasha closed her eyes, and began to concentrate. The air around her began to shine, as energy entered her body, her skin glowing. Suddenly, her eyes flew open, and she screamed to her opponent, hovering a short distance away watching.

"Emerald Buster!" she screeched, and an enormous orb of green energy shot from her hands. Denkuma gasped; he couldn't react in time, and was hit by the orb. Shouting in pain, the demon was thrown back. He hit the wall of the canyon hard, and was then lost from view as Arasha closed her hands, detonating the orb. An enormous plume of smoke blossomed, and all was silent.

"Did...did you kill him?" murmured Mataro. He was unsure if Arasha had managed it or not. The Emerald Buster was a powerful technique, but Denkuma was extremely resistant to damage.

Arasha shook her head. "No...he's still in there."

No sooner had she spoken the words than Denkuma zoomed out of the smoke, and reached her within the space of two seconds. Pulling his fist back, the Devil punched Arasha savagely across the face before she could block. Arasha gasped, and blood flew from her mouth and nose. Denkuma didn't stop, but began a relentless assault on Arasha. Uppercuts, side punches; every punch was answered with a scream or a moan of pain, and when he ceased the attack with a brutal kick to the abdomen, her face had several bruises and cuts on it. Blood ran freely from her nose, and the side of her eye was bleeding. She backed off quickly, finding a tiny rock jutting from the side of the crater wall, and collapsed onto it, regaining her strength.

"Arasha!" called Mataro, and he reached for his belt, where a small plain bag hung. The Gaman Peas. Ripping the bag off, he hurled it towards Arasha, who extended her arm to catch it. It never arrived.

With a great sizzling sound, the pouch caught fire as it was hit by a black ki blast. Mataro's eyes widened; the Gaman Peas were all destroyed. Their entire supply. Now they were facing this Devil with nothing but the strength they had left, which was dwindling every second.

"You fiend!" shouted Mataro, springing into action. Leaping forwards through the stale air, he swung a punch, but Denkuma ducked under the blow. Without faltering, Mataro spun around, also flying forwards a few metres so that he was behind Denkuma. Then, he did a low kick, sweeping Denkuma's legs out from under him, and followed up with a punch to the back of the head. Denkuma grunted, and turned around. As he did so, his eyes bulged for a split second, before Mataro savage roundhouse kick struck him in the face. Spittle flew from Denkuma mouth, and he was knocked to the side.

"You'll pay for that one, Slavoan! Demon Flash!"

Denkuma's trademark black beam with white spots erupted from his hand. Mataro answered with his own.

"Extreme Cannon!"

A red beam of intense heat shot from Mataro's palm, and the two deadly beams met in midair. Immediately, Mataro felt his energy being pushed back, and for a moment was almost overcome; Denkuma's output of energy was much greater than his own.

"_Don't give in. We will win this for Geani, and avenge his death."_

Arasha's words came upon Mataro as he struggled to hold back Denkuma's endless waves of ki. Inside him, new energy was unlocked, and he screamed. Energy exploded from his hands, temporarily pushing Denkuma's beam backwards. The struggle was so great that the very walls of the crater themselves began to crack. Fragments turned to chunks, and before long, giant rocks were tumbling down. Several corpses were crushed beneath the weight of the stones. The sound was tremendous.

Mataro looked up at the destruction, but didn't cease the stream of ki flowing from his hands. Denkuma, on the other end, was smiling grimly. He seemed to be toying with Mataro.

Then, it caught Mataro's eye. Far above, a large mass of rock the size of a house was teetering on the brink of the crater. As he watched, it tilted too far over the edge, and began the long fall down, directly above him. With all his attention focused on holding back Denkuma's attack, he was in no position to stop it. He would be hit, and then overwhelmed by the Demon Flash.

The rock fell to within ten metres of him. Mataro closed his eyes, but suddenly there was an shattering crack, and he was showered with tiny fragments of rock.

"_What the...?"_

Mataro opened his eyes, to see Arasha hovering above him, her arm extended. Despite her injuries, she had flown over and destroyed the rock before it had hit him. Suddenly, she twisted her right hand into a claw, and pointed it towards a chunk of stone falling pass. It was caught by her mind, and she threw the rock telepathically, hurling it through the air at Denkuma.

The demon cried in alarm as the rock rocketed toward him, but suddenly, two beams flew from his eyes, disintegrating the rock before it reached him.

"_Now's my chance!" _

Mataro screamed, sending every burst of energy he had at the demon. His assault was so great that Denkuma's Demon Flash was pushed back, almost overwhelming Denkuma with his own attack.

"Fool! I'm far more powerful than the likes of you, YAAARRGGHH!"

The amount of ki Denkuma was creating suddenly doubled, and Mataro grimly realised that he had had no chance all along. Denkuma had been toying with him. The pressure on Mataro's hands was incredible he struggled to hold the Demon Flash back. Within seconds, there was no longer any of Mataro's Extreme Cannon left, and he was simply trying to keep Denkuma's attack at ay with his own bare hands.

"_I can't stop it," _realised Mataro in a panic. "_My only chance is to somehow get out of the way. I can do this...I will do this!"_

With that thought encouraging him, Mataro shimmied to the side, slipping out of the beam's line. The Demon Flash continued on its way, and hit the wall of the canyon, punching through to the other side, until the beam was tearing straight through the side of Mt Fowl. Smoke was blown everywhere, and for a moment Mataro could see nothing but shadows.

A minute later, the smoke cleared, and Mataro coughed. Remembering where he was, the Eternal Warrior straightened up, glancing around frantically. Where was Denkuma? Where was Arasha? Finally, he caught sight of movement, and both questions were answered at once...

Denkuma was behind Arasha, his grey arm wrapped around the front of her throat. He grinned savagely, yellow eyes seeming to glow in malice, as he faced Mataro. Arasha, face still covered in blood, and looking extremely exhausted after her beating at the hands of her captor, struggled valiantly, but was unable to break free. With a great crack, Denkuma punched her in the side of the head with his free hand. She screamed in pain, and stopped struggling, hanging in his grasp.

"Make a move and she dies. I'm holding all of the cards here, Mataro!"

Mataro gasped. "Arasha!" he shouted. "Let her go!"

"With pleasure. Of course, I can't have her flying around, so I think I'll break her neck first..."

"No!" yelled Mataro. "Don't!"

Arasha stirred, and looked at her comrade. "Mataro," she said. "Kill Denkuma. Don't worry about me. I've fought to the best of my abilities, and I failed. Please, kill us both."

Mataro shook his head wildly. He was way out of his depth here; Denkuma was wicked fast and powerful, and held a hostage. Mataro was unarmed and exhausted. To make things worse, his own comrade was asking him to sacrifice her to destroy their enemy.

"I won't do that!" he protested. "How could I?"

"Just kill him!"

Denkuma watched the exchange with sadistic interest. "Well, well, well. What's your decision, Mataro? Will you let me hold your dear Arasha captive, or will you end it for her, killing me in the process? Choose!"

Mataro shook his head again, clutching at it as he did so. Wild emotions were assaulting his mind; he couldn't concentrate.

"Please! Spare me this decision, Denkuma!"

"You know what I would do in your situation, don't you?" asked Denkuma, smiling cruelly.

Mataro looked defiantly at him. "You're a cold-hearted murderer, Denkuma. I don't care for your opinion."

"Choose! Kill us, then, Mataro, if you dare! Listen to your team-mate; she's begging you to destroy us."

"Do it!" screamed Arasha. "Kill him, my life doesn't matter, just kill the bastard!"

Mataro closed his eyes, dropping his head. When he opened them again, they were filled with sadness.

"I'm sorry...you were more than just my comrade...you were my companion...my friend. I don't think I'll be able to bear it...first Geani, and now you. I loved you all."

Tears welling up in the big man's eyes, he raised one arm and twisted his upper body so that his hand was low by his side. With a bright flash, a yellow ball of ki shimmered into being inside the claw that Mataro's hand had become.

Arasha smiled warmly at him, a smile that was layered with emotion. "We've been through much," she said. "Wish me back...please."

She closed her eyes, resigned to her fate. Mataro screwed his up as well, unable to look at what he was about to do. With a scream of frustration and grief, he thrust his arm forwards, and the orb of ki turned into a destructive beam, roaring directly for Arasha and Denkuma.

Denkuma cried out, showing fear for the first time.

"_H-he did it...he actually did it!"_

The beam held every ounce of Mataro's energy, and in his weakened state after the fighting, Denkuma knew that he might not survive if he was hit. Desperately, the Crimson Archfiend hurled Arasha at the beam. She was consumed, screaming for an instant before being destroyed, and Denkuma raised two fingers to his forehead. Mataro's attack reached him at that moment, and the demon's eyes bulged, feeling the tremendous heat and energy in the attack. This feeling came with the revelation that unless he acted in the next millisecond, he would be vaporised.

With a mighty boom, the beam struck.

**000**

A mighty cloud of smoke and dust enveloped Mataro. He ignored it, overwhelmed by sorrow and guilt. Denkuma had fallen, he was sure of that, but the victory seemed insignificant compared to his loss.

"_Geani's gone, and Arasha's dead by my own hand. What have I done?"_

As he hovered in midair, his companion's last words reached his ears.

_Wish me back...please._

Mataro clenched his fists. He would wish her back, and Geani too. He would wish back all of the habitants of Havien, personally. The war was finished, but not without loss. Perhaps he could remedy that...

Reaching up, the fighter wiped away his tears, and raised his head. Using the tiny amount of ki he had left, he would catch up with Arnika and the others, and use the Dragon Balls to return everybody back to life.

Then he was struck.

As Mataro lifted his head, an incredible force shot down from the clouds and impacted with the side of his face. The force of the blow sent him hurtling for the canyon wall; he hit hard, smashing the rock for several metres, before peeling off the wall and crashing onto a small ledge jutting out of the wall a few metres below.

He could barely move, and was aching much more than before, in extreme pain all over his body. Groaning, he turned his head to the right, and something came into focus, lying two feet from him. A Gaman Pea. Dimly, Mataro remembered that although the bag had been destroyed, every one of the fighters had taken a Pea for themselves, him included. Until now, he had forgotten about it, but at this crucial moment, the tiny life-saving food had fallen from his pocket. All he had to do was reach out and take it...

WHAM!

As Mataro extended his weary arm to pick up his only hope, a clawed red foot had slammed down on the crook of his arm, stopping him in his tracks. With difficulty, Mataro turned his head to look upwards, only to pale in fear for the first time in his memory.

Denkuma was standing over him, alive and breathing. The previously grey chest and red stomach were now singed and burnt, but not enough to be unrecognisable. Both fists were clenched in rage, and though he was wearing a cruel smile, the eyes told a different story. They were almost literally flaming in hostility and revulsion.

Without saying a word, Denkuma reached down and picked up the Gaman that Mataro had been struggling to get. As the beam had hit him, Denkuma had used Instant Transmission, teleporting away a split second before the full force of the attack had arrived. Nevertheless, it had caused him extreme pain, and had almost killed him regardless, if it weren't for his iron-hard will to survive, and his own resilience as a demon.

The Gaman disappeared down his throat, and instantly, his energy soared back to its max. Every cut and bruise acquired during the fight was healed, and his singed front gained colour again. Denkuma was completely and totally healed.

"Thank-you for that," he said to Mataro. "You've been a big help."

Mataro didn't answer, only glared at Denkuma in contempt. The demon tilted his head, and moved his foot from Mataro's arm to his chest, pushing roughly down onto it.

"So degrading isn't it? To train for so many centuries, only to fail so miserably."

Mataro turned his head to the side and vomited a large amount of blood onto the ledge. Coughing several times, he turned back and answered his foe.

"W-we didn't fail. The D-Dragon Balls are ours n-now." The wounded man grinned in spite of the situation. "You won't get your wish today, D-Denkuma."

Denkuma pushed harder, and Mataro gasped in pain, ribs snapping off one by one.

"You _have_ failed. The Eternal Warriors are all dead; you are all that remains of their legacy!"

Mataro nudged his head a few centimetres to either side. "N-not...urgh...not all dead...K-Korros...Argh! Korros and Ha-Hamasan still...remain..."

"Korros? HA! That snivelling low-life is not worthy of the title Eternal Warrior. Haven't you realised? He abandoned you to die. By not accompanying you, even though he is the strongest out of all of you ignorant scum, he sentenced you to death. And he knew what he was doing, too...he willingly stayed behind. You're alone...completely."

Mataro gave one last grin, taunting Denkuma. "So-s-s-so...are..."

Denkuma pushed even harder onto the Slavoan's chest. By now, a continuous stream of blood was pouring out of Mataro's mouth, as well as out of his nose. It ran down the side of his face, saturating the rock beneath him. He was finding it hard to breath, and his words came out thickly, but the warrior carried on.

"So...so are you."

Denkuma snarled in anger, and he swiftly bent down, grabbing Mataro by the throat and wrenching him to his feet. Blood sprayed everywhere, but neither Denkuma nor Mataro cared. Content with his final jest, Mataro's head fell back, and he was gone.

A silence befell Denkuma as he registered Mataro's death. Then, spitting in disgust, he threw Mataro's body over the edge of the ledge, where it fell the short distance and landed, only a few hundred feet from Geani's.

"Now to deal with your ambitious little friends."

Placing two fingers on his forehead, Denkuma felt around him, around the entire planet, for his adversaries. Suddenly, he smirked.

"_Found 'em."_

The Devil shimmered and disappeared.

**000**

Wind tore at the fleeing group's clothes, blowing them savagely. Zeang was in the lead, as he had memorised the way, followed closely by the three Saiyans, and then Kenta and Arnika. All of them clutched a Dragon Ball, with the idea that if Denkuma somehow caught up with them, he'd have to kill all of them to get his hands on the Balls.

They'd been flying for about half an hour. At this rate, it would still take about four hours in total to reach Hamasan's Hall; they probably wouldn't make it.

Suddenly, the landscape below changed from an expansive forest to an enormous city, miles wide. Tall buildings rose to the sky, but the group was flying too high to hit any. Above them, the sky was darkening; it was nearly night time. A great deal of the building's were in ruin, and cars lay abandoned on the street. Denkuma had already been here before, and slaughtered every inhabitant in the city.

They were halfway over the metropolis when he appeared. A few hundred metres ahead, simply materialising into being, a creature from their nightmares. Denkuma had found them.

"Swerve!" roared Zeang, and his followers twisted around to the right, skirting around before getting back on track. Zeang himself kept on flying straight ahead, and Denkuma, no mercy in his eyes, hovered above the city, waiting for him.

"Take this!" bellowed Zeang, thrusting his hands up, and then bringing them down. Denkuma gasped as an invisible force caught him, sending the demon hurtling to the ground. He crashed straight through one of the buildings. The metal screamed as it was sheared in two by Denkuma's flying body. Zeang zoomed overhead, joining the others, this time at the back of the group.

Behind them, there was a huge crash, and Denkuma shot out of the wreckage, surrounded by his signature black aura. With a sonic boom, he shot after them.

"Don't stop!" shouted Kenta to his sister. "He's right behind us!"

The young Havien twisted his head to look behind him. With an enraged Devil right on their tails, he began to seriously doubt that they would make it back alive, with all six Dragon Balls. Suddenly, his stomach sunk as he realised that if Denkuma were here, then Geani, Mataro, and Arasha must all be dead...

Denkuma was growing closer and closer, until he was a mere two hundred metres behind. Kenta looked down, just as the city below ended. They were flying over a large deserted plain, jumbled with rocks and debris. Just as the situation was looking particularly grave, it happened.

Arnika screamed as the ground in front of them seemed to explode, throwing dirt kilometres into the sky. The explosion was accompanied by a terrific roar that sounded like impossibly loud thunder, and smoke formed into a mushroom cloud, about three kilometres ahead.

"Keep flying!" ordered Zeang.

They grew closer to the cloud. Arnika was terrified. What was the cause of it?

Her question was answered within seconds. A hiss filled the air, and a thin red beam shot from the cloud, zooming past the group and hitting Denkuma. He yelled in pain and was thrown backwards, crossing back over the city. Rolling in midair so that he was the right way up, Denkuma growled, and began to fly towards them again. Not for long.

In the direct centre of the mushroom, a great wind formed, blowing the smoke away in a perfect circle around the point of origin. Out of the circle flew a small shape, growing larger as it drew near.

A humanoid figure, with green skin and white robes. On its head were two antennae.

The newcomer tore past the group, with such force in his flight that they were blown right of the air, throwing them around.

"The Namek!" shouted Rhuna, as she recovered and twisted to see him.

"Korros..." muttered Blitzo, unable to believe it.

Korros had joined the battle.

He had a pure white aura, which rippled like flames around him. Denkuma's eyes bulged as the Namekian grew closer. He couldn't stop in time.

"Denkuma!" bellowed Korros, and with incredible speed and strength brought his foot up, striking Denkuma in the face. The demon was kicked right out of flight; he careered backwards through the air, hitting one of the skyscrapers. Meanwhile Korros righted himself, and turned to face the others, a few hundred metres away.

"Get out of here!" he shouted. "Go back to Hamasan's Hall! I'll fight Denkuma alone."

They obeyed him at once, all of them sensing that this wouldn't be a good time to annoy the green-skinned warrior. He was livid, shaking with an endless rage. The small group turned and fled, disappearing over the horizon.

"Now," muttered Korros, facing the city once more. "I have a personal score to settle with you, fiend."

Far below, Denkuma threw a pile of rubble of himself and hovered into the air. He seemed neither angry nor pleased.

"So...you've decided to show your hideous fanged face, have you Korros?"

Korros held up a fist. "Talk is meaningless. Denkuma...we fight to the death!"

"Gladly."

**000**

And thus, the Super Easter Happy Fun Special is complete! Wasn't it just so Super and Happy and Fun? A bit tragic, though...but look on the bright side! If Denkuma's already murdered every person in the city, then no one else can get hurt in the ensuing battle! Hooray!

Sayonara, tomodachi's ;)


	19. Korros Angers

**Dragon Ball X**

Hey, people! Animaster's back, along with a new chapter of Dragon Ball X.

As you probably know, last time Mataro and Arasha were both killed in the struggle against Denkuma, who then used Instant Transmission to find the escaping companions. Suddenly, Korros burst out of the ground and attacked Denkuma, sending him flying with a very Pikkon-ish kick. Now, Korros prepares to take on Denkuma alone while the others escape...

On with the chapter!

**000**

Silence fell for a few seconds, as both warriors stared each other down. Korros was scowling, but Denkuma had a taunting smile, covering a small portion of his menacing red face. Then, they both moved.

They were like mirages in the air, disappearing from sight altogether before shimmering back into view, locked in combat. Their speed was unbelievable, both moving so fast they were almost invisible. Small sparks flew from random points in the air as they struck, and small shockwaves erupted forth every few seconds, always in a different place.

Finally, the enemies ceased the swift action, and broke apart. Flying backwards slightly so there was distance between them, Korros stared at his hated opponent.

"Impressive, my old friend," said Denkuma. "You've gotten stronger since we last met."

"Don't butter me up with honeyed words," retorted Korros. "I know what you're trying to do."

Denkuma tilted his head. "And that is?"

Without waiting for an answer, he zoomed forwards, pulling his fist back to strike. Korros waited until the last possible second, then fell backwards, pulling his legs up to deliver a powerful two-feet kick to Denkuma's belly, but the demon was already gone. Korros' eyes widened as he sensed the Devil under him, and rolled quickly through the air, dodging Denkuma's next punch.

Korros flipped the right way up, and looked back. Denkuma was floating upside down, arms folded, smiling unpleasantly at the Namekian.

"You're fast," Denkuma complimented. "But not fast enough."

Korros snarled. "Stop that!"

This time it was the Namek that started the scuffle, shooting several white ki blasts from his hands. Denkuma countered with ones of his own, firing black orbs from his fingertips. The energy balls met in mid-air, exploding as they collided. Korros was temporarily blinded by a cloud of smoke.

When his sight returned, Denkuma was gone. Korros looked around frantically.

"Behind you," said a soft voice.

Korros gasped, but didn't stop to think. He could sense Denkuma's arm carving its deadly arc behind him. Acting entirely on extinct, Korros flew up, turning in midair as he did so. As Denkuma's punch missed, Korros grinned, and torpedoed downwards, his feet aimed directly at Denkuma's face.

"_Not so fast, my friend..."_ thought Denkuma, and he performed a back-flip in midair. Korros' kick flew past him, so close that Denkuma felt the Namekian's foot brush his face. Then Korros was gone, plummeting a few metres towards the city below, but he wheeled around and flew back up. With an unspoken agreement, the two enemies faced each other, pausing in their fight.

"You're stronger than your pathetic friends," said Denkuma. "They were so...weak."

Korros growled in outrage. "How dare you speak of them...They don't deserve to be spoken of by your foul tongue. They deserve better."

Denkuma threw back his head and laughed. "This, coming from someone who has ignored and constantly stamped on their efforts at every opportunity! In my honest opinion, you don't have the right to speak their names either!"

Korros bowed his head. "No...I do not. I'm not worthy of their respect. But I can do as much as I can to earn it!"

The Namek shot forwards, white cape billowing behind him. Denkuma met him, and together they fought furiously, exchanging several punches every second. Shockwaves erupted with every blow, crashing through the air. In the city below, several windows shattered from the force.

And yet, not one of the attacks hurt either target. Both of them were either blocking or dodging the other's assault with perfect accuracy, and not a single punch from either fighter injured their opponent.

Suddenly, they broke apart, flying several metres apart before whirling around and cannoning back together.

With a colossal boom, they collided. Bolts of energy and lightning erupted from them, and an incredible wind blew through the land, flattening trees and crushing rocks. Even the solid steel buildings creaked and groaned, and few of them actually collapsed, destroying their neighbours as they fell upon them. An enormous cloud of smoke and ash billowed into the sky, covering the two fighters in its choking embrace.

Several minutes later, it finally cleared. By now, the day had fully ended, and the sun was sleeping. Slowly, the wind blew away the smoke to reveal Korros and Denkuma hovering high above the city, locked in a grapple. Korros held Denkuma's right wrist, holding back a punch. His own attack had been caught by Denkuma, and both fighters were struggling to break through the other's defence.

"You should just give in, Korros," grunted Denkuma, and his hand shook as he held back the Namekian's fist. "Submit defeat. You should know that you can't win!"

"I will not yield!" shouted Korros, and for moment, Denkuma's arm slipped in his grasp, bringing the fist closer to him. "I would never fall to a demon like yourself."

"Then die!"

Denkuma pulled his hand out of Korros' grip, and grabbed the Namekian's trapped fist with both hands, before swinging the alien around in circles. Suddenly, he let go, throwing Korros several hundred metres through the air. Korros yelled as he hurtled through the air. Finally, his trajectory was interrupted as he crashed into a skyscraper. The steel bent beneath his body, before finally giving way, and Korros landed roughly on the floor inside the building.

Back outside, Denkuma raised his arm, and his palm began to glow.

"Demon Flash!"

The Devil's signature attack erupted from his hand, streaking through the night sky before eventually detonating on contact with the tower that Korros was in. The skyscraper exploded violently, sending giant shards of deadly metal arcing through the air, falling back to the ground. One of them hit an abandoned car; it pierced directly through the roof.

Soon the smoke cleared, leaving nothing left of the building but a small ten-metre high wreckage. High above the ruined structure hovered Korros, glaring at Denkuma with so much hatred in his eyes. Denkuma flew forwards, eventually stopping twenty metres from the Namekian.

"It's such an honour to fight you again, Korros," declared Denkuma. "We haven't met in so long, after all."

"I'm delighted to hear it," answered Korros sarcastically; his voice was dripping with venom. He reached a hand to the clasp of his robes. "Now, what do you say we end the warm-up and start fighting seriously?"

Denkuma smiled menacingly. "Agreed."

Korros undid the clasp, and pulled his robes over his head. The wind blew them around, the cloth making a loud flapping noise as it was rippled by the gale. Underneath the brilliant white robes was a simple blue gi, fitting tightly on the Namek's alien body. Korros narrowed his eyes, and threw the robes aside; Denkuma watched them fall. To his surprise, the robes smashed into the ground with extreme force. They even sunk into the asphalt, creating a small crater. A dust cloud blew from under them as they impacted.

"Weighted training clothes," said Denkuma. Even he seemed impressed.

Korros smiled for the first time. As soon as he had taken off the robes, he had felt his power soar, some of the restraints released. The cape came next, crashing down next to the robes. Korros looked expectantly at Denkuma. The pink patches on his arms bulged slightly as he prepared to fight.

"Don't hold back."

Denkuma hunched over slightly, stretching his arms out, fists clenched. "I don't intend to."

It was spectacular. The two mortal enemies charged one another, striking hard and fast. Their arms and legs were blurs, blitzing through the air and hitting furiously. Without the added weight of his heavy clothes, Korros' speed and power had both risen tremendously. Likewise, Denkuma was pulling out all of the stops. The two fighters moved through the sky as they fought, slowly weaving through the buildings in the city. Not a single punch or kick was getting through their defences, each keeping up a perfect guard. Sweat poured down Korros' face as he shot his limbs back and forth, but Denkuma didn't seem tired at all. Korros knew it was a false act; demons like Denkuma didn't grow weary physically. Denkuma was struggling almost as much as he was. Their strength was almost equal, but Korros knew that Denkuma was slightly stronger.

"_Not if I can help it," _he thought furiously. "_Take this!"_

Jumping back suddenly, he raised both his hands and brought them side-by-side in front of him.

"Hurricane Buster!" he roared, and a bazooka of yellow energy shot from his joined hands, rearing through the air towards Denkuma, who's eyes bulged. Backtracking as quickly as possible to buy himself some time, the demon gathered some energy of his own and caught the beam. For a moment, he seemed to be overcome, but then he hurled the wave over his head. It flew straight up, and disappeared into space. Suddenly, an explosion rocked the sky as the beam detonated.

Korros took his chance, zipping forward while Denkuma was distracted and attempting a punch. Just before he pulled through with the attack, Denkuma sensed him, and shot upwards. Korros' attack missed, and the Devil dropped back down again, smashing his elbow onto the top of Korros' head. The Namekian yelled in pain at the blow, and blasted to the ground. However, he wasn't alone...

Before he had even gone two metres, Korros thrust out his right arm, and to Denkuma's shock, it extended. Even as the demon watched, Korros' arm grew longer, and grabbed onto Denkuma's ankle, yanking as it did so. Suddenly the Devil was flying towards the ground, shooting past Korros and smashing into the road. Korros himself managed to pull out of flight about a hundred feet above the ground.

Grinning in satisfaction, the Namekian watched the crater that Denkuma had made when he impacted. It went at least ten metres into Haven, and was about two metres in diameter. The hole was surrounding by rubble. Silence fell.

Without warning, there were two great bangs, and a pair of black orbs shot out of the pit, looping around and zooming towards Korros. The green warrior's eyes widened.

"That scoundrel!"

Moving as fast as he could, Korros twisted in midair and rocketed off. The black orbs followed him, mirroring his flight pattern precisely. Desperately, Korros weaved in and out of the buildings, zigzagging around in a wild attempt to lose the orbs, but he couldn't seem to shake them.

"_They're following me perfectly!"_ thought Korros, as he dipped and lunged. "_I can't escape!"_

The Namekian spun around in mid-flight, and fired two blasts of his own. They hit the pursuing balls and exploded, but the orbs weren't fazed. They just kept on coming.

Grimacing, Korros turned his back to the orbs once more, and gasped. Denkuma was hovering just ahead of him. It was too late to avoid him; Denkuma swung his foot horizontally, and caught Korros in the stomach. The fanged alien gasped in pain, spitting out a mouthful of saliva, and was knocked backwards, straight for the deadly orbs. As he drew closer to them, they split, blasting in opposite directions and then zooming back in again from either side. At the last second, Korros regained control of his flight and went up. The balls collided and were finally destroyed by each other; the resulting explosion engulfed Korros even as he ascended. The Namek screamed in pain as his body began to blister, but then the burning was gone as the energy petered out. Nevertheless, Korros was blown even higher.

Denkuma was waiting for him, having used Instant Transmission to teleport above. Locking his fingers together, he brought the joined fists down, smashing into Korros' back and sending the Namek flying down, all the way to the ground.

He hit hard, and rubble was blown everywhere. High above, Denkuma grinned, watching smoke and dust billow out. Soon, it faded, and the demon's eyes bulged as Korros melted away too.

"Where'd he go?" shouted the demon.

"Here I am!" roared Korros, from behind Denkuma.

Denkuma turned his head, gasping in shock, just in time to receive a brutal punch to the head. The Devil was hurled away, soon smashing into a tall building, which crumbled under him, collapsing to the ground. Korros smiled grimly, reflecting back on his strategy. As the balls had began to converge on him, he had performed a multi-form technique, creating a double of himself, which was then destroyed by Denkuma.

A few seconds later, Denkuma burst from the debris, furious. A black aura shimmered around him. To the Devil's surprise, a trickle of his black blood ran from his nose and down his face. In anger, Denkuma wiped the blood away. He hated being injured in battle. From his point of view, it was a sign of weakness.

"You'll regret that!" he roared, and the two warriors began their immense struggle again, punching and blocking. Above the two, the sky growing darker and darker; time was wearing on.

After blocking a particularly vicious punch, Korros crossed his arms in front of him, before sweeping them to either side. A massive wave of ki erupted from his body, blowing Denkuma back several feet. Taking the small window of opportunity, Korros followed him, and did a somersault, his legs whipping around and knocking Denkuma down. The Devil flew to the ground, but managed to land on his feet. Korros sped down as well, and stopped just above Denkuma.

"Getting tired?" he jeered, and folded his arms, leaning backwards. Denkuma growled, but before he could attack, Korros began a series of rapid-fire kicks, pumping his legs like pistons. Denkuma was slammed in the face again and again, slowly being pushed back along the street. The demon dug his feet into the ground, attempting to anchor himself to a single spot, but his legs carved two long gouges in the road as Korros kicked him backwards.

"You'll pay for what you've done to this planet!" shouted Korros as his feet hammered back and forth. Hate resonated in his voice. "I'll kill you for it!"

"You can try!" responded Denkuma, managing to shout back through the kicks. "I can't be defeated by the likes of you!"

Korros smirked. "Now you're just beginning to sound clichéd!" He ended the assault with one final kick, bigger than the rest, which knocked Denkuma sideways into another building. The Devil smashed through the glass display window, spraying shards of glass everywhere. Korros ran over and leapt through the hole, as Denkuma jumped back up.

This time, they fought on the ground. Denkuma blocked Korros' initial punch, grabbing the Namek's arm and flipping him over his head. Korros slammed down on his back, but propped himself up again with one hand and swung his legs in a horizontal arc, knocking Denkuma down as well. The demon prevented his fall with one hand, and grabbed Korros' throat with the other. Then, twisting around, he hurled his opponent straight through a brick wall. Dust coated everything in the room as Korros blasted through the wall of the building and crashed through into the next.

Denkuma raised an arm. "Adios!"

A black beam erupted from his hand, shooting directly through the Korros-shaped hole and detonating inside the neighbouring skyscraper, which Korros was currently residing in. The Namekian was blown out the door back into the street, smoke pouring from his joints. The green warrior looked exhausted. Next door, Denkuma climbed slowly out of the shop window.

"You know, it's so ungrateful of us to trash that poor person's shop. Perhaps you could meet him in the Other World and apologise."

"Shut up," snapped Korros, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth. A large bruise covered his right cheek, and cuts were all over his body. Though he would never admit it, Denkuma was sporting similar injuries. Their battle was a straining one.

Denkuma tilted his head. "Why do we play around, Korros? I know you far too well to believe that this is your best..."

"How perceptive of you."

Denkuma threw back his head and laughed. "You're not scared, are you? Give me all you've got!"

Korros glared at his nemesis, and straightened up. Lowering his arms to his sides, he inclined his head very slightly. "Very well. Let us not restrain ourselves any longer. We fight to the best of our abilities."

Denkuma shifted his body into a combat stance; one foot ahead of the other, elbows in, arms extended, body turned slightly to one side. "Feel free."

Korros hunched, and a low rumble came from deep within his chest, a grunt that grew longer and louder. Veins throbbed in the Namekian's forehead as he summoned every iota of energy that he had, calling it to his body. The very ground that he was standing on cracked, the gravel of the road splitting apart. Tiny shards of rock were lifted into the air by Korros' growing energy, floating around him in a powerful whirlwind. Metal groaned, ripping apart. Entire cars crumpled where they had had been deserted, simply being crushed by the incredible pressure in the air.

Gradually, Korros' grunting became a loud scream; a roar that sounded throughout the entire city, rising tremendously in pitch and volume. Above him, the buildings shook, swaying back and forth as the wind tore at them. Every window shattered; millions of tiny shards of glass fell, only to be caught and blown away. The very ground itself roared, shifting and moving beneath the warriors feet. The entire time, Denkuma was smiling, standing in complete silence as he watched his opponent maximise his power.

Finally, Korros' energy hit its peak, and he gave one final scream. The white aura surrounding him practically exploded, flaming off in several directions and blowing everything that wasn't nailed down (and some things that were) several metres. The only thing that remained standing against the Namekian's might was Denkuma. Their colours contrasted; Denkuma's grey and red against Korros' green and pink.

Korros' frenzied yells died down, but his power remained. It was practically leaking out of him. Denkuma smiled, and clapped his hands.

"Impressive. I was wrong about what I said before. You're not just stronger than your friends; you outmatch them at every aspect. Compared to you, they were insects. If you had of joined them in their struggle against me, I probably would had lost. Your own fear and self-inflicted doubt led them to their deaths. How does it feel?"

Korros stared with so much hatred you could almost taste it. When he spoke, his voice was equally layered with rage and loathing.

"For most of my life, I've lived in utter fear of your power. Of retribution. I've never had a moment's rest, so great my terror was. Because of this, I gave up hope for centuries, certain that your level of power was unmatchable. I knew that one day, you would return, and that when you did, we would all suffer and die. This caused me to become distant from my companions, to treat them with extreme disrespect. All because of you. Well, no longer. I'll personally destroy you, and end the fear that has plagued me for so long. It won't free me from my torment and guilt, but there's always hope. Now, enough talk...you're through!"

Korros took off from one foot, a tortured war cry tearing from his mouth as did so. Denkuma's smile faded, to be replaced with a look of utter revulsion. Everything went silent. The Devil drew back an arm, fingers curling in, and as if in slow motion, his fist pumped forward, meeting Korros' halfway.

BOOM!

As the two opposite forces impacted, an incredible shockwave echoed out, a sphere of complete destruction that wiped out everything in its path. Every single structure surrounding the warriors smashed to bits, thousands of tonnes of stone and steel blown away. The noise was inconceivable, thundering crashes that resounded for miles, covering the entire city.

It took several minutes for the sound to die down, revealing a perfect circle a kilometre wide of pure devastation. Not a single building in that segment of the city still stood; everything had been crushed and ruined. Hovering above the circumference of doom were two figures.

One, a tall grey figure, with a lashing tail, long fingers and clawed feet. The demon's head was crimson, with several large spikes. His stomach was also bright red. Around him flamed a black aura, radiating death and misery.

Opposite the Devil was a lone warrior. He had green skin, and pink patches on his arms and stomach. Two antenna sprouted from his head, and he wore a blue gi. In contrast to the demon's black aura, this Namekian had a white one.

Their names were Denkuma and Korros.

Denkuma's evil voice echoed out across the distance between them.

"You've grown strong, my old friend. _Too _strong!"

"I'll give you one chance, Denkuma!" retorted Korros. Like the Devil, his voice was amplified by his ki levels. "Leave this planet or perish at my hand! You are scum! The lowest of the low! If you had the ability to feel remorse or guilt...it would tear you apart!"

Denkuma's face twisted in fury. This pathetic Namekian slug had caused him more pain than he had ever been in. "How dare you mock me!" he screeched. "You'll regret ever attempting to defy my wishes. This very planet will regret it!"

Very slowly and deliberately, Denkuma raised his right hand above his head, and extended a single finger. Kilometres above them there was a tiny spark. Seconds later it appeared again, and then expanded, growing to the size of a house, and getting larger.

Korros' eyes widened as he realised what Denkuma was doing.

"STOP!"

Denkuma's sphere of death tripled in size, swelling and amplifying, until it was roughly the size of castle.

"Korros...I offer you a choice! Dodge this ball, and your planet gets erased from existence, blown to particles. Or, you can die stopping it..."

Korros was paralysed by shock. How could Denkuma do this? The Namekian shivered in fear.

"We are who we choose to be! _NOW CHOOSE!"_

Denkuma thrust both his hands into the air, and brought them down again. With the sound of crashing thunder, his mighty weapon began to descend upon Haven, getting closer and closer with every passing second. Korros' eyes bulged.

"_You're insane!" _he screamed, but Denkuma's only response was to laugh; crazy, demented laughter, which filled Korros' ears and blocked out all of his other thoughts. He couldn't move.

Memories flashed before him. Faces. Geani...Mataro...Arasha...Hamasan. The last face stuck; the face of his father, who he had slandered and insulted for centuries. A father who was frail, and old. A father who, even now, was counting upon Korros to defeat Denkuma. Suddenly, that goal sprang into mind, overriding all fear.

"_I'll stop this...even if it kills me."_

The ball loomed closer; it was a mere fifty metres above his head. Desperately, Korros flung out his arms and caught it. The energy seared his hands, flooding him with awful shocks that coursed through his veins. The very ki that made up the sphere was pure evil; it invaded Korros, attacking his mind, destroying his control.

"_I...will not...give in!"_

Korros screamed, his own great power shooting out and striking the orb, but it wasn't enough to knock it back without harm. Only enough...to destroy it.

Korros made his decision.

Some more faces loomed into his mind. The face of a young girl, incredibly bright, trapped in a dangerous war. Her brother, who fought so valiantly, even though he was weaker than his foe. A genius psychic, who fought with his mind and always with his heart.

And the three who accompanied the others. Three powerful warriors who fought courageously and hated to lose to anyone. Three who had grown so much in the past four months, almost overtaking their tutors.

The Saiyans.

"_Please..." _thought Korros, as he expended all of his energy into the sphere, detonating it. He could feel the tremendous heat, the outstanding pressure on his entire body, which was beginning to crumble along with the ball. "_I have failed. Haven is in your hands now..."_

**000**

A terrific explosion rocked the horizon, sucking the colour and sound from the world. Arnika screamed as the shockwave hit her, even thousands of kilometres away as they were. It almost shattered her teeth.

The group pulled out of flight and looked back. All that was visible was light, everything was so underwhelming compared to the explosion that dominated the landscape. The expression's on everyone's faces differed.

Kenta and Arnika both looked scared, completely out of their depth. The amount of power in that explosion was awe-inspiring. Zeang, on the other hand, was just plain shocked. Makurin looked determined, Rhuna heartbroken.

Blitzo was none of these, but at the same time all of them. His face was expressionless, yet encompassed every emotion available.

Then the sound hit, a thunderous rumble that rocked the ground far below. Trees were uprooted, flying across entire fields. Rocks were smashed where they sat.

Blitzo slowly turned to look at the others. He was clutching the Dragon Ball very tightly, but as they watched, he held it out to Arnika, who looked at it, confused.

"Take my Ball. I'm going back."

Blitzo's voice seemed empty, even more so compared to the sound of the explosion. And yet, in those few words, Blitzo conveyed everything he needed to say. Arnika stared in wonder, and found herself taking the ball. She nodded.

"I know you can do it," she said. Within seconds, she had three more Dragon Balls pressed into her hands; Makurin, Rhuna, and Kenta were all giving up their Dragon Balls to join Blitzo. Arnika looked at her brother.

"Be careful. You're all that I have left..."

Kenta nodded. "I will be."

The group of four took off, rocketing through the air at top-speed, yet it seemed so slow. Arnika felt odd. It was if she was seeing everything in a new light. She felt something inside her, something awakening. A spirit. She recognised it...Korros.

"_You're alive inside of me," _she thought. Dimly, the young girl became aware of Zeang tugging on her sleeve.

"Come on, we have to get back to Hamasan's Hall immediately. There's no time."

Arriving with a jolt back in the present, Arnika nodded. Together, the two friends flew off.

"_Be careful."_

**000**

Well, that would have to be arguably the greatest chapter I've ever written, in my opinion. I'm not sure if that's just me though, so give me your thoughts ;) I hope you all like it; it took me about 6-7 hours to write.

Wow, Korros sure was more powerful than we all previously thought, eh? And Denkuma still beat him? How are the Saiyans gonna cope? For your enjoyment, I've put together a quick Power Level list. Ta-da!

Blitzo: 52,000

Makurin: 51,000

Rhuna: 50,500

Zeang: 40,000

Kenta: 37,000

Arnika: 3,000

Hamasan: 25,000

Korros (Weighted Training Clothes): 60,000

Korros (No Training Clothes): 75,000

Korros (Max Power): 87,000

Geani: 59,000

Mataro: 55,000

Arasha: 57,000

Denkuma (vs. Korros With Clothes): 62,000

Denkuma (vs. Korros Without Clothes): 80,000

Denkuma(Max Power): 95,000

Phew, they're starting to get pretty strong, aren't they? Well, I'm off for now. See you all later, for the next chapter of Dragon Ball X!

Oh, on a bit of a side-note, has anyone seen the movie "Tomorrow, When the War Began"? I saw it the other day; one of the best movies I've ever seen. And it's Australian! It makes me all warm and fuzzy inside whenever I remember that.

See ya's!


	20. Saiyan Pride

**Dragon Ball X**

Hello again, loyal readers. Pleased to see you once more.

Last time, Korros was killed by Denkuma in an incredible effort to save Haven from Denkuma's attack. The three Saiyans and Kenta make the decision to go back, while Arnika and Zeang forge on ahead to get back to Hamasan's Hall.

**000**

Denkuma stared with cold satisfaction at the enormous crater in the city. Most of the energy in the demon's attack had been either diverted or absorbed by Korros, but the Namekian had been destroyed as a result. The energy left over had blown a good third of the city to Oblivion, leaving a gaping chasm in the city, stretching down hundreds of metres.

"So long, my friend," murmured Denkuma. "You _were _a worthy opponent after all."

The demon descended to the ground, standing on the lip of the yawning abyss, and peered into its depths.

"Sometimes I surprise even myself...what a pitiful effort on my part."

In the back of his mind, Denkuma could sense his fleeing targets. They were easy to find, as there was almost no one else on the planet to interfere with his search. Suddenly, he felt them stop. He could almost imagine their fear. Denkuma grinned to himself; one of his favourite pastimes was frightening lesser beings.

The Devil's grin faltered slightly as he sensed his enemies split up. Four of them were heading back, while the other two continued on their flight to freedom. Denkuma's smug grin was fully reinstated when he realised that his opponents were literally delivering themselves to him.

Seconds later, Denkuma had moved from the edge of the newborn fissure to an undamaged district of the metropolis below.

"_These buildings make for a much more__enjoyable arena than that awful rift,"_ thought Denkuma.

Crouching down, the demon began to wait.

**000**

Blitzo surveyed the maze of buildings and streets in front of him. Somewhere in that city was Denkuma, awaiting their arrival.

Soon after turning back, the warriors had quickly realised that Denkuma was not moving towards them. His blocked energy signature was almost completely still, recovering from its brawl with Korros.

"Let's go," the Saiyan said, leading the group in flight over the buildings. Within moments, they came across an incredible sight.

"Woah," said Kenta, his eyes widening. "That's one big crater."

Rhuna shook her head. Although the chasm was nowhere near small, she knew that Denkuma could have easily made a far larger impact on the planet.

"He's near," she murmured. "Be on guard, guys. That bastard could be anywhere."

"I can sense him," said Makurin quietly. "He's somewhere in front of us."

Grimly, the group shoomed forwards, cutting their path through the dusty air.

**000**

Denkuma's head shot up. He had been crouching in the one spot, perfectly still, for almost an hour, waiting patiently for his prey to show up. And they hadn't disappointed him. Denkuma frowned; he still hadn't regained his full power during his meditation.

The sky above the Devil was even darker than before, as midnight drew closer. There was no moon, but the sky was perfectly clear. Denkuma's status as a demon granted him almost perfect sight in the dark, an extreme advantage over his opponents.

And then they were upon him. Denkuma stood, stretching his limbs, and looked up, into the sky. Hovering a few hundred metres away, between two enormous buildings that were miraculously still standing, were four figures, silhouetted against the dark night sky. Denkuma folded his arms, and flew over to them, pulling out of flight as he grew close.

"How brave of you to return. Brave...but foolish. Korros was far more powerful than you are, and even he fell beneath my might. You don't stand a chance!"

"Shut up!" Blitzo yelled back at him. "You've been in the lead for too long, Denkuma. Even now we can sense that you're injured and tired; the four of us will overcome you."

Denkuma threw back his head and laughed. "Your common sense is blinded by arrogance, your judgement clouded by pride. Spare me your pathetic idealisms, and face the truth! I cannot be defeated!"

Rhuna hunched over, clenching her fists. "We'll see about that, freak!"

The Saiyan girl hurtled forwards, pulling back her fist and then pumping it forward. Denkuma rolled backwards in midair, evading her attack quite effortlessly. Rhuna somersaulted, kicking downward, but Denkuma had already flown out of the way, looping around. Before he could get behind, Rhuna, however, Blitzo was on him, punching wildly at his hated enemy.

Denkuma was struck several times before striking back, slamming his foot into Blitzo's stomach. The Saiyan's eyes bulged, and spittle flew from his mouth. Denkuma backpedalled rapidly.

"Incredible," he commented, clapping his evil hands together. "Geani and his feeble companions have taught you well the past few months. Unfortunately, their meagre teachings aren't enough to slay me."

Makurin joined the fray, rushing at Denkuma. Halfway there, he raised an arm, firing off several small ki blasts. Denkuma dispelled them all with a flick of his hand, but this left him vulnerable, and before he knew it, Makurin had rocketed past him and slammed the side of his palm into Denkuma's neck.

Denkuma yelled in pain, as he was knocked out of the air, plummeting towards the ground, where Kenta was waiting, Nenriki clasped in his hands. The blue blade shone under the stars, tiny lights winking across the perfect steel.

Denkuma's eyes widened, and he thrust out an arm. A second later, his hand smashed into the pavement, propping his body up upside down. Moving as quickly as he could, Denkuma threw his own body to the side, dodging Kenta's deadly stroke.

Denkuma rolled as he landed, unconsciously letting out a breath. This might be harder than he thought. These fighters – with the possible exception of the boy with the sword - were approximately the same level in strength as the Eternal Warriors. This wouldn't be easy.

Even as this thought crossed his mind, Denkuma was crushed into the pavement by Blitzo and Rhuna, each planting a foot on his shoulder as they cannoned down from the sky. Denkuma yelled in pain at the attack, as his body forced a small crater into the road. His body was weary from the fight with Korros.

A snarl twisted itself onto Denkuma's face. How dare these rodents defile him, the future ruler of the universe? They will pay!

Swiping his hands in front of his body, Denkuma thrust them out to the sides, sending a wave of ki in all directions. The gravel surrounding him was blown to bits, and several nearby structures collapsed. Kenta and the two Saiyans were catapulted into the air, flipping around as the ki battered at them.

Blitzo grunted as he resisted the tainting force of Denkuma's attack. Drawing back his own, arm, he blasted a beam at Denkuma.

"Burning Dart Beam!"

The searing energy erupted from his fist, punching through Denkuma's wave. The Devil ceased his outburst of ki, raising two arms to face the beam.

"Zen-Toku!"

A green wall materialised, a solid barrier of light. With a crash, the Burning Dart Beam collided with the shield, disintegrating into nothing. Blitzo gasped.

"What the...?"

"Take this!" roared Denkuma, rocketing towards Blitzo. The demon's fist struck him hard across the chin; Blitzo's head snapped to the side, and he was knocked into a building, smashing through the wall. Dust covered him.

"Blitzo!" shouted Kenta, and he jumped into flight, swinging Nenriki towards Denkuma. The heavy blade sliced through the air, but stopped short as Denkuma grabbed Kenta's wrist. Kenta gasped, as Denkuma twisted his arm around, almost snapping it. The young Havien screamed in pain as his bones began to crack.

Denkuma grinned in sadistic pleasure. "Sorry, young one. Consider this your punishment for meddling in things you don't understand. My plight for immortality is beyond your simple mind. You wouldn't be able to contemplate the magnitude of that wish."

A voice cut into Denkuma's speech.

"Contemplate this."

In horror, Denkuma turned his head to see Makurin's palm directly in his face, palm glowing.

"_No, wait!"_

"Execution Blaster!"

A destructive blue beam exploded from Makurin's hand, overwhelming Denkuma and narrowly missing Kenta by inches.

"Yes!" cheered Rhuna. "Makurin, you did it!"

"Guess again!"

Denkuma shimmered into being directly in front her, and lowered his hand from his forehead.

"I'm not quite dead yet," said the demon, and grabbed the girl by the throat. His black fingers tightened, cutting into her skin.

Rhuna's eyes bugged out as her breath supply was cut off. Scrabbling wildly at the Devil's fingers, she desperately fought to loosen his fingers, but was unsuccessful.

"Let her go!" bellowed a voice, and Denkuma turned towards the building that he had knocked Blitzo into. Light seared from the hole, and suddenly the building detonated. Steel and plaster flew in all directions as Blitzo freed himself from inside.

A second later, the Saiyan himself hurricaned from the wreckage, a continuous scream tearing from his throat. Denkuma twisted, freeing both of his hands by hurling Rhuna to the ground. She hit hard, gasping for breath. Large red welts covered her neck where Denkuma's fingers had constricted her.

Meanwhile, Kenta and Makurin gasped as Blitzo assaulted the demon, striking hard and fast. Denkuma retreated under the rain of blows, dodging and blocking as he flew backward. Blitzo followed, firing punch after punch.

"_Damn," _thought Denkuma, as he struggled to repel Blitzo. "_I'm exhausted...even this whelp is giving me trouble. How could I have been so short-sighted?"_

"Enough!" roared Denkuma. Charging energy into his leg, he thrust it forward. The foot sunk into Blitzo's stomach; the Saiyan wretched, and sunk to the ground.

Makurin snarled, and hurled through the air at the demon. Denkuma intercepted him, grabbing the Saiyan, spinning around, and throwing him at Kenta, who was knocked out of the air by Makurin's flying body. Tangled together, they careered through the air, smashing into another building. The pair was lost in the rubble as the walls collapsed around them.

Denkuma looked around wildly, surveying his opponents. Blitzo, crouched on the ground, clutching at his stomach. Kenta and Makurin, heaving enormous chunks of metal off their bodies...

...and Rhuna, struggling to rise to her feet as she massaged her injured neck.

"_Hello, my dear..."_

Rhuna finally stood back up, leaning against the wall of the small block of apartments behind her. Turning her eyes to the sky, she scanned the air for a sign of the grey and red monster.

"Over here!" yelled Denkuma, plunging down from Rhuna's left. It was as if it was happening in slow-motion. Rhuna's eyes widened in fear and surprise as the demon hurtled towards her. His left leg was bended behind him, the right extended. Unable to react in time, Rhuna could only watch in stunned silence as Denkuma's leg smashed into the side of hers.

Rhuna's scream split the night.

The Saiyan female's leg had been snapped clean in two by Denkuma, who had cannoned into the side of her knee with the force of twenty trains. The bone shattered like glass, the splintered remains piercing through her skin from the inside.

"RHUNA!" screamed Blitzo, scrambling to his feet and streaking through the air, attempting to knock Denkuma clear. As it happened, he didn't need to. Denkuma leapt backwards, taking off into the air, flying a safe distance into the air and landing on top of a tall tower, staring down at them all, folding his arms.

Meanwhile, Kenta and Makurin smashed out of the ruins of their building, darting across to where Rhuna lay, her face as pale as a sheet. Blood fountained from her leg, and the white bone showed clearly through the red haze.

"Oh my God," gasped Kenta. "That fiend!"

Smiling sadistically, Denkuma watched from above, standing with perfect balance on the spire of a low building, his arms folded. Blitzo eyed him carefully, in case the demon decided to attack suddenly.

Rhuna gasped in pain, clutching desperately at her horribly disfigured leg, shivering violently. Blood poured out of the open wound, soaking the pavement that she was lying on. Kenta scrabbled to her side, and gingerly reached into her pocket.

"Don't worry," he said quietly. Rhuna's wild eyes turned on him, a wordless question. Kenta smiled warmly. "Don't worry," he repeated. "We all still have our Gaman Peas, remember?"

Rhuna's eyes creased at the corners, her face brightening in hope. Before she could do anything else, however, her pupils dilated suddenly, and rolled into her head. The Saiyan girl had passed out.

Kenta ripped his hand out of her pocket, Rhuna's Gaman Pea clenched tightly in his fist. Moving quickly, he opened Rhuna's limp jaw.

"Don't give that to her!"

Kenta twisted his head to see Makurin, his arms folded, staring at Denkuma. Blitzo, standing beside him, also turned to see what the Saiyan was talking about.

"Why not?" asked Kenta. "She needs this Pea right now!"

Makurin shook his head gruffly. "Not quite. She'll last a while yet. But it's too dangerous here."

Makurin finally took his eyes off Denkuma, and knelt down besides Kenta.

"Listen to me," he said urgently. "Don't argue. Take Rhuna and get out of here."

"What? I'm not leaving now, this is my fight too!"

"_Do as I say!" _hissed Makurin. "Take Rhuna, and catch up with Arnika and Zeang. Blitzo and I will stay here and fight Denkuma."

Kenta nodded reluctantly, but then screwed up his face and shook his head. "You can't beat him on your own, he completely destroyed the others, and even Korros! He's too strong!"

Makurin's eyes seemed to wave, and they went out of focus. The Saiyan was unusually silent for a few seconds, not even breathing, before he finally spoke again.

"We will fight him alone. Tell Arnika not to summon the Dragon until you can sense that both Blitzo and I are dead."

Kenta looked confused, but then realised the logic. If everybody was wished back to life now, then Makurin and Blitzo would still be fighting Denkuma exhausted. If they were dead, they'd come back at full strength along with everybody else. With a jolt, Kenta realised that Makurin had a plan.

The Havien nodded. "I understand." Kenta wrapped Rhuna's arm around his shoulders and lifted her up, supporting her broken leg with one hand. "Good luck."

Makurin didn't answer, so Kenta began to fly off.

"Kenta!"

The boy looked back, as Makurin turned a bloodshot eye on him. Blood was still trickling from the corner of his eye, running down his face.

"Whatever you do, don't let Rhuna look back at what I've created. If she does...you'll die."

Blitzo turned sharply at Makurin's words, and Kenta's face paled.

"B-but...what should I do if she does before I can stop her?"

Unexpectedly, one of the corners of Makurin's mouth tilted up into a grin. "If she does look back...cut off her tail."

Blitzo realised Makurin's plan immediately; his eyes widened in shock and his mouth dropped. Kenta was confused, but a memory gradually came back to him, so faint that he almost lost it. The day that the Saiyans had arrived on Haven, the day that Blitzo had killed Cuo and lost his own tail...

"_A Saiyan without a tail is like a dog without a bone. You've lost your greatest strength, Blitzo."_

"_True. But I've also lost my greatest weakness."_

"_Even so, I'd rather have a tail than lose it. You can't transform anymore."_

Kenta remembered his confusion at this point.

"_Transform?" _he had exclaimed. "_Into what?"_

"_When a Saiyan looks directly at a full moon, a change takes place," _Blitzo had explained. _"They grow enormous, into a great ape. Their strength increases enormously."_

"_The Oozaru..."_

Kenta felt a deep fear blossom inside him. He nodded urgently, and scrabbled into his own pocket.

"Eat this," the boy said, passing Makurin his own Gaman Pea. "You'll need it."

"Thank you." Makurin took the Pea, slipping it into his mouth. Chewing roughly, the Saiyan felt his energy returning with every second. Within moments, he was at full strength. Makurin looked at Kenta for the last time. "Now go, get out of here. Get as far away as possible."

"OK. Good luck."

Makurin inclined his head. Blitzo spoke. "We will meet again, Kenta. Of that there is no doubt."

The Havien waved two fingers in a gesture of farewell, and then took off, carrying Rhuna carefully over his shoulder.

Makurin glanced at his oldest friend, who had walked a short distance away, turning his back on the retreating Kenta. Blitzo's head was bowed; he wasn't moving.

"You could destroy the planet if you do this."

Makurin was silent for a few seconds. "I know. But it's the only way."

Blitzo grinned, and sat down on the pavement. Far above, Denkuma still watched them, waiting for them to make the next move. Makurin stayed standing.

"It's so humiliating, isn't it?" observed Blitzo, as he stared across the road at nothing. "We're stronger than most Saiyans ever were, yet we've been completely bested by this freak."

Makurin was silent.

"But now, our race has dwindled to just us...three Saiyan's left. We must survive if we're to continue the line of our ancestors."

Blitzo stood up, and hovered a metre or so off the ground.

"I'll keep my distance...do what you have to do."

Makurin nodded curtly.

"Blitzo," he said, as his companion began to fly off. Makurin was staring at his left hand, which he held in front of him. "If I go completely out of control...promise me that you'll sever _my _tail."

Blitzo was surprised. After all, Makurin never hesitated to remind him how significant a tail was, and how he would never willingly lose his. And yet, here he was, giving Blitzo permission to cut it off if need be.

"I will. Now, kill that son of a bitch and save us all."

Blitzo turned his back on Makurin, and shot off into the air, ascending higher and higher so that he'd be out of Makurin's range. Most Saiyans could not control themselves after they transformed, and had difficulty distinguishing friend from foe.

Meanwhile, Makurin tugged his shirt over his torso and head, tossing it to the ground beside him. Like Blitzo and Rhuna, Makurin had been wearing Havien clothes since arriving on the planet, to blend in with the Haviens and not attract attention by wearing Saiyan armour. However, he had never taken off the tight-fitting blue suit that every Saiyan wore under their armour. Like the armour, it could stretch to incredible lengths, enabling a Saiyan to transform without tearing their clothes.

Makurin's tail unwrapped from around his waist, swaying gently behind him. The Saiyan extended his left arm again, and his hand began to glow, a small white orb glowing into being.

A Power Ball.

With a roar, Makurin tossed it into the air.

**000**

Denkuma stood perfectly balanced on his chosen building, his arms folded. The demon grimaced as he glared down at his enemies, crowded around the female, who was clutching at her shattered leg. A few moments later, the younger boy with the sword picked her up, and flew away, leaving the other two alone. One of them – Blitzo, Denkuma recalled – slumped onto the side of the road, gazing at nothing.

A minute later, he stood again, and without warning erupted into the air, shooting several hundred metres towards to the sky. Denkuma watched him in confusion. What was the fool doing now? A surprise attack?

The Devil looked back down at the other warrior, who had taken off his clothes, revealing a tight blue suit underneath and, bizarrely, a brown tail that swished back and forth.

"_What the -?"_

Suddenly, the demon's enemy hurled a strange white orb into the air. It fired up, growing larger and larger in size, before coming to a stop in midair, about five kilometres above them. Hovering under it was Blitzo. The orb shone brightly, dazzling Denkuma's eyes. Denkuma looked back down at Makurin, face contorted in confusion. The sight that met his eyes rocked him to his core.

Makurin was gazing at the shining orb, an odd look across his face. It was as if...he was transfixed by it...Suddenly, the fighter's body went incredibly rigid, his limbs shaking violently. The swishing tail began to writhe, twisting back and forth in large arcs.

"What's...what's going on?" muttered Denkuma, and at that moment, a small spark of fear echoed inside him.

A snarl grew on Makurin's face, his mouth stretching into a pained expression. Suddenly, his eyes glowed red, and then everything changed.

Hair. Dark brown hair grew rapidly all over Makurin's body, rough bristles sprouting out of his skin. The fighter's ears grew pointed, and his muscles expanded, swelling to several times their normal size. Makurin's body rippled, growing taller and wider, until he was over fifty feet tall, as big as some of the buildings.

His tail thickened until it was the width of a tree trunk, and lengthened, waving and whipping through the air. Out of his mouth came a massive growl, and his face mutated, his jaw extended. The teeth in his mouth sharpened. Behind his jaw, his red eyes blazed.

Finally, Makurin was fully transformed. The Great Ape threw its arms into the air and roared, a chilling sound that echoed throughout the entire city. Denkuma shouted in fear. Makurin's energy and strength were both incomprehensible.

Makurin raised a leg and slammed it into the ground.

**000**

**BOOM!**

Blitzo looked from afar, his eyes widening. Although he had seen the transformation many times before, and had even made it himself on several occasions, he was in utter awe of the raw power that Makurin was displaying.

The Great Ape transformation multiplied a Saiyan's Power Level by approximately ten times. Blitzo's eyes widened. That would put Makurin's Power Level at...

"_He could compete with Frieza himself!"_

Far below, the Great Ape roared, stomping his foot again. It smashed into the ground, blowing a crater into the road. Denkuma staggered backwards, gasping as he took off into the air to evade the monster pursuing him.

Makurin was gone.

The Oozaru had returned.

**000**

Dun, dun, duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun!

Now, I'm sorry about two things. First of all, this chapter is much shorter than the last one. Second, I'm sorry about the quality. The fight scene here seems very mediocre compared to last chapter, I know. Well, I'm pretty tired, but I really want to finish this chapter tonight, so it might seem a bit rushed an insufficient. Oh well...in the words of Vegeta: "Sad for YYYYYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUU!"

So, Makurin transformed into the Oozaru at last, the first time in my story that the transformation has occurred. I hope it was convincing ;) And Denkuma seems completely outmatched and terrified at last! Poor Rhuna, though. That leg would _really _hurt.

Farewell for now, my friends. See you around!


	21. Azulong, the Eternal Dragon

**Dragon Ball X**

Hi guys! Here's how it works...At my school, in year 10, we go to a camp for a month, to teach us independence and stuff. I leave in two weeks, on the 29th of May. Coincidently, there only remain two more chapters in this arc of Dragon Ball X after this one. So, I'll update today, then again next weekend, and then the final chapter the weekend that I leave. That gives me a month off before I begin the next saga.

Oh yeah, this chapter is set to be a massive one, easily the longest I've ever written. There's an absolute _crap _of stuff in this segment of the story.

Anyway, on with the chapter!

**000**

Zeang gasped, as he somersaulted out of the air, twisting around and looking back the way they'd come.

"W-what the -?"

Arnika stopped too. Even she could feel the immense energy literally blasting from the city, hundreds of miles away.

"What's that?" she screamed, eyes boggling.

Zeang was quivering. "What does that moron think he's doing? Transform, at his level?"

"Transform?"

Zeang realised that Arnika had never heard of the Oozaru, and quickly explained.

"Only Elite Saiyans receive the training needed to retain conscious thought once they become a Great Ape. For an untrained Saiyan at his level of power...Makurin could easily go completely out of control and destroy the entire planet in a blind display of strength...he's insane!"

Arnika's mouth was open, her bottom lip shaking slightly in fear. Her eyes were wide.

"But...what can we do?"

Zeang shook his head. "Nothing...at this point, he'd be completely unstoppable. Only Frieza himself would be able fight evenly with Makurin right now."

Arnika shook her head in disbelief and horror, but then looked confused, as something occurred to her. Quickly, she did some calculations in her head and said, "But there's no moon! The last full moon was two weeks ago...how can he turn into a Great Ape now?"

Zeang shook his own head; his giant cranium looked like it would fall off as it wagged back and forth.

"Saiyans can create a ball of energy called a Power Ball. It serves the same purpose as a moon or other celestial body, imitating the reflection of a sun's rays and transmitting the necessary amount of Blutz Waves into the Saiyan's eyes, triggering the transformation. It even has special properties; a Saiyan will remain transformed for a short while even if a Power Ball is destroyed."

Arnika shivered. "What should we do now?"

Zeang thought quickly. "We need to get back to Hamasan's Hall _right now."_

Arnika nodded. "Let's go."

To their surprise, as they turned around, a small shape loomed over the horizon, flying at top speed towards them. With the dark sky above them, it was barely discernible. Arnika and Zeang didn't move, both watching the shape until it drew close enough to make out.

"It's Hamasan!" cried Arnika, hope blossoming inside her.

Zeang dropped down to the ground. Below them was a dirt field, adjacent to an old farm. "Come on!"

The two geniuses zoomed to the field below, and seconds later Hamasan joined them. Zeang could still feel the immense power of Makurin radiating over the entire planet. Arnika rushed forward and threw her arms around the elderly Namekian.

"You're here!" she gasped, and let go. Hamasan's usual warm grandfatherly smile was missing. It's absence brought the seriousness of the situation crashing back into Arnika's mind, and painfully reminded her of Korros' death.

"What are you doing here?" asked Zeang, as he joined the two of them.

Hamasan reached into a fold in his robes, and produced the Six-Star Dragon Ball.

"I came to deliver this." Hamasan's deep tones were troubled. Arnika took the Ball, and pulled all of the others from _her _pockets, depositing them all on the ground. Finally, Zeang added the Ball that he had carried to the small collection, completing the set of seven Dragon Balls.

"Finally," whispered the alien. "We have them all at last."

"For the first time in over five-hundred years, the Dragon will be summoned again," said Hamasan.

"OK...let's do this..." said Zeang, but suddenly looked back. "What's that?"

Arnika looked back too, but didn't understand what Zeang was talking about.

"What?"

"I can sense two people flying towards us...it's Kenta and Rhuna!"

Arnika gasped. "What? Just the two of them?"

Zeang nodded urgently, biting his lip. "Rhuna's energy is really low...she's injured badly." The alien thought for a few seconds, then ascended a few metres. "I must go back and help them. Wish the Havien's back, along with Ferris. I'll be back soon."

And then he was gone, vanishing into the dark within seconds. Arnika looked back at Hamasan, who looked at her with gentle eyes.

"You're the one to summon him. Now bring him to life and revive this planet."

Hamasan took several steps backwards, clearing a space for Arnika. The girl herself stood a metre from the Balls, and raised her arms, fingers spread wide. After one last glance at Hamasan, who nodded encouragingly, Arnika recited the poem that Hamasan had taught her during one of their many conversations.

"By the ground below, and the Heaven's up high,

Rise up now, rise to the sky!

To make my wish I sing this song,

So now come forth, great Azulong!"

**000**

Denkuma staggered back, gasping in fear, as the Oozaru opened its mouth and roared, a chilling sound that echoed throughout the entire city, miles wide. The ground itself shook below them, cracks appearing in the roads.

"What did you do?" he screeched, unable to believe his eyes. The fierce fighter from before had somehow mutated into this raging beast. Not only that, but its energy levels had exploded, multiplying by several times and dwarfing even Denkuma's own power. This...it couldn't be!

The Great Ape shot out its arm, moving at a speed disproportionate to its size. A skyscraper crumbled without resistance before the monkey's fist, shattering into hundreds of pieces. Roaring again, the Oozaru stamped its foot, forcing a crater into the road. Several cars were crushed under its enormous sole.

"Incredible..." breathed Denkuma, stunned by the display of power. Before he knew it, the Great Ape sniffed, drawing in a large breath. Suddenly, it turned.

"Argh!" yelped Denkuma, as the Oozaru laid its eyes on him. The next thing he knew, a destructive purple beam was roaring towards him, flowing from the fanged mouth of Makurin. Denkuma dived to the side, dodging the beam by inches. He didn't have any time to let out his caught breath, however, as the Oozaru followed up with a massive punch.

The furry fist crunched at Denkuma, smashing at his entire body and sending the demon flying several hundred metres, tearing directly through buildings and out the other side. Denkuma screamed in pain, before dropping to the ground, groaning. Bruises covered his body, and blood leaked from several small cuts.

"Y-y-y-you..." he muttered. "What did you do?"

Staggering back to his feet, Denkuma stared at the ground, struggling to regain his breath. As he panted, a colossal shadow fell over him, and he looked up to see the Great Ape looming right in front of him, teeth bared. A terrifying roar tore from its lungs.

"Get away from me!" screeched Denkuma, launching backwards and narrowly avoiding the Oozaru's stomp. To his dismay and horror, the Great Ape followed him, lurching doggedly after Denkuma's fleeing form.

Desperate to escape, Denkuma whipped his hand up and launched a beam at the Ape.

"Demon Flash!"

The black beam exploded upon impact, engulfing Makurin's head in a cloud of smoke. Within seconds, the smoke was blown away, to reveal the Oozaru completely undamaged, leering down at him. It was growling.

"Oh dear," muttered Denkuma, and his movements merely blurred, placed two fingers on his forehead and vanished just in time to avert death as the Oozaru stomped down again.

Flying high above the city, Blitzo watched the entire series of events as they unfolded, completely in awe. Makurin's power was tremendous; buildings were blowing up and being destroyed with every passing second, as the Oozaru's energy ran rampant. Due to losing his common sense, the Great Ape was failing to hold in his wildly flowing power, which simply blew everywhere, causing the destruction of the buildings.

As the Saiyan gazed upon the action, he gasped as he saw Denkuma use Instant Transmission.

"_Crap! He could be anywhere on the planet now...meanwhile, Makurin will keep on rampaging without restraint!"_

Therefore, he was shocked to hear a low gruff voice from directly behind him.

"Your friend is full of surprises."

Blitzo's eyes widened, but before he could react, he was grabbed from behind by Denkuma.

"You know, I wouldn't think of leaving you out of the fray. Why don't you _join in?"_

Blitzo grimaced as Denkuma threw them both to the ground, flying towards the city below, and closer to the raging Oozaru. Halfway down, it saw them, and roared a challenge.

"Makurin, stop!" yelled Blitzo, but it was too late; the Great Ape opened its maw and sent another purple beam flying their way. Denkuma held them in place, and teleported out of the way a split second before the beam hit them. Blitzo rolled in midair, twisting violently to the side and only just dodged the beam. The Saiyan could actually feel it singing his face, centimetres from his skin.

"That was close," he muttered. Down amongst the buildings, the Oozaru roared, beating its chest.

Denkuma materialised beside him, and shot his arm out. Blitzo ducked just in time, and spun backwards, kicking Denkuma in the face as he rolled. The demon shouted in pain, but grabbed Blitzo's ankle. The Saiyan shouted, as Denkuma yanked him over, punching him in the face on the way by.

Blitzo and Denkuma stared at each other, hate on both fighter's eyes. Suddenly, they broke apart, and a purple energy wave seared up through the gap between them. The Oozaru was in the city below, still launching attacks at the duelling adversaries.

Blitzo couldn't believe Denkuma's determination to kill him. Even with the Great Ape below trying to kill them both, the Devil was still attempting to fight the young Saiyan.

"_He just never gives in, but after all this fighting he's still stronger than me!"_

Blitzo was broken out of his thoughts by an assault from Denkuma, and the Saiyan warrior was forced to block several punched, back-tracking through the air under Denkuma's hail of strikes.

They broke apart to swerve around another beam from Makurin, who roared savagely as they dodged his attacks. The Oozaru stomped a few more times and punched down several buildings.

And then, Blitzo and Denkuma were back together, exchanging several wild blows, ducking and weaving around each other as they looped through the air. Finally, the punches ceased, as they locked into a grapple, clutching at the others hands, trying to break the others fingers.

"Let me ask you," grunted Denkuma. "What did your friend do to become so powerful?"

"Like I'd tell you," answered Blitzo, straining to hold back Denkuma's strength and speak at the same time. "But I'll tell you this; he'll kill you, you can't beat him."

"You'll die too!" retaliated Denkuma. "Along with entire planet. Nothing will survive his rampage...unless...you know how to change him back, don't you?"

Blitzo was silent, and Denkuma knew he was spot on. "Yes. You alone can stop that monster! So now, Blitzo, I offer you a choice...let the beast rage, and destroy me, sacrificing the planet in the meantime...or you can stop him, transforming him back to normal, leaving me to make my wish and become immortal."

The demon gave a violent shove, hurling Blitzo away. Blitzo looked down at the Great Ape, and gave a yell of fright, shooting to the side and dodging yet another beam, which shot up into space. Dimly, he realised that Denkuma was right; once Makurin destroyed both him and Denkuma, he would inevitably turn to Haven itself, ultimately destroying the planet in his violent uncontrollable rampage.

"Make your choice, _Blitzo!" _taunted the demon. "What will you do?"

Blitzo took a deep breath, and raised an arm, palm facing directly to the sky. With a buzzing noise, a yellow disk materialised into his hand, and he hurled it down to the ground. The energy disk hummed through the air, hissing past the buildings and straight through the Oozaru's legs, before looping back up and slicing straight through the Ape's tail.

The effect was instantaneous. Makurin roared, throwing his arms into the air as he felt his tail get severed. The tail writhed through the air as it fell, shrinking as it tumbled to the ground, until it was its regular size.

Likewise, Makurin was decreasing in size, his fur crawling back into his skin, shortening rapidly. A continuous painful roar tore from the Oozaru as it deflated, hovering into the air as it shrunk, leaving the buildings down below. As Makurin turned back to normal, his power was draining, until it was so low that Blitzo could barely sense it. Makurin was exhausted.

Finally, he had turned back to his normal self. His tight blue Saiyan suit had de-stretched, and clung to his body like a glove. Makurin had rose into the air as he had transformed back, and now hovered fifty feet above the ground, arms hanging, body slouched. It took all of his concentration to even stay in the air, he was so exhausted.

Denkuma smiled unpleasantly. "Why, thank you...you did just what I wanted."

"What?" Blitzo raised his head.

The Devil laughed. "I didn't believe for one second that you'd just stand by and let that monkey destroy the planet. You're not like your spiky-haired friends; you're different. You fell right into my trap, stopping that savage. And now you'll both pay the price pay the price!"

Blitzo's eyes widened, and he shot to the ground, Denkuma hot on his heels.

"Makurin!" Blitzo shouted. The Saiyan wearily raised his head, breathing heavily. His arms still hung; he could barely move. As he watched, Blitzo tore by, zooming down to where Makurin's clothes still lay, discarded on the city streets. Frantically, Blitzo snatched at pants, ripping into the pocket and tearing out Makurin's Gaman Pea. Desperately, he twisted around and pulled back his arm, about to throw it.

Too late.

Denkuma tackled Blitzo, and the two crashed to the asphalt. As they landed, Denkuma lost his grip on his enemy, and Blitzo quickly stumbled to his knees, punching Denkuma in the stomach. The demon flinched, and instinctively kicked Blitzo clear across the street. As the Saiyan landed, he rolled, regaining his feet without pausing.

"Catch!" he bellowed, and threw the Gaman Pea clenched in his fist through the air at Makurin, who was still suspended in midair over the city. The Gaman Pea flipped high over the buildings, on a direct course to the weary Saiyan, who held out an arm to catch it.

Makurin watched as the Pea hurtled towards him, and extended his arm. Then he saw him. Denkuma materialised into being only a few metres behind the bean, zooming after it. The Devil's right arm was held out, ready to snatch the Pea out of the air before it reached Makurin. In his left hand, there was a burning black energy sphere. Makurin's eyes widened, and everything seemed to go silent.

Denkuma grabbed the flying Pea only a few centimetres from Makurin's outstretched hand. At the same time, he thrust his left arm forward, the orb searing into Makurin's stomach. The Saiyan cried in pain, but was too exhausted to dodge. Denkuma's face was remorseless, utterly cruel and committed.

"Game over, monkey boy..." he growled, and suddenly, the ball turned into a beam, blasting straight through Makurin, who's eyes bulged, his mouth wide in a silent yell.

"_Makurin!" _screamed Blitzo, still down on the street. It was useless to attempt to help; he would never make it in time. Consequently, he was forced to stand and watch as Denkuma unleashed his brutal assault.

Finally, it was over. The beam faded, and for a few seconds Makurin hung in suspension, arms spread to the side, eyes wide. Then, slowly, the light and shock in his eyes faded, the life draining from the pupils. Slowly, the Saiyan tipped backwards, tumbling through the air, before smashing into the road, body broken. In his stomach was a large gaping hole, almost a foot in diameter. The Saiyan had fallen at last. He was dead.

Denkuma smirked.

"Bang," he said, and tossed the Gaman Pea into the air. It vanished down his throat, and within seconds the demon had his full strength back. Denkuma's body healed rapidly, the bruises fading away. And as he revelled in his recovered might, the Devil failed to notice Blitzo, still standing on the street below.

The remaining Saiyan was hunched over, his fists clenched in rage. The veins on his face stood out against his face as a grunt of fury erupted from him, his teeth clenched. Raising his head, Blitzo looked at his enemy, an opponent he now hated more than any other...even more than Frieza.

"I'll kill you!"

**000**

For a few seconds, nothing changed. The Dragon Balls simply sat there, light pulsing from each one in a pattern. Silence fell.

"Did it work?" asked Arnika, looking over to Hamasan, who didn't answer. He simply stared at the balls. Arnika looked back down at the small spheres.

Just in time.

A lightning bolt thundered down from the sky, striking the balls. An enormous crash bellowed over the land, as an endless stream of electricity connected the Dragon Balls and the sky.

Arnika screamed, falling over backwards. The sky above turned completely dark, wiping out all light. The only thing visible was the pulsing Balls and the lightning. Hamasan stood completely still, watching the display with an expressionless face.

All sound stopped, and the light faded, leaving the land in complete darkness, with the exception of the seven balls, still winking with an orange light. Then it happened. A burst of light exploded from the Dragon Balls, growing in shape, morphing and expanding in all directions. Arnika watched in fear as the light created a definite shape, and faded, revealing the form of the Dragon underneath.

It was enormous.

The Dragon's head was the size of a bus. The head was a solid block, with several spines shooting off to the side. Scales covered the entire Dragon, a bright shade of green, which seemed to glow, creating a large ring of light spreading about fifty metres in every direction. Everything beyond the ring of light was pure darkness.

A long snout extended from the Dragon's head, lined with hundreds of razor sharp teeth, all overlapping and fitting together perfectly. Two large nostrils hung just above the jaw, and red eyes blazed behind the snout. A serpent-like neck connected the head to the body, which was about twenty-five metres long. Four muscular legs sprouted from the body, stretching down to support the Dragon. Curved ivory claws dug into the soft ground.

On the Dragon's back was a line of spines, from the base of the Dragon's neck to the end of its fifty-foot tail. The mystical beast was curled around, and it banged its tail on the ground a few times.

"Azulong," said Hamasan quietly. "He's even more amazing than I imagined."

Azulong lowered his head, to glare with his red eyes at Arnika, who quivered beneath his gaze.

"**You have summoned all seven Dragon Balls," **boomed Azulong. His voice was incredibly loud, and echoed tremendously. **"What is your wish?"**

"Y-y-yes..." stammered Arnika. "M-my wish..."

She glanced once again at Hamasan, who nodded. Arnika turned back to the Dragon, and forced some confidence into her voice.

"I want you to bring every single one of Denkuma's victims, as well as Ferris, the man who was killed saving the planet from the alien Cuo, back to life, completely restored to normal!"

Her voice seemed insignificant when compared to Azulong's. As the young Havien girl looked upon the Eternal Dragon, the mystical creature slowly shook his head.

"**I am sorry. This wish cannot be granted."**

**000**

Denkuma's yellow eyes were triumphant as he hung in the air, arms spread wide. At his absolute full strength once again, there wasn't a fighter on the entire planet who could defeat him now.

"I win!" he crowed, talking to no one in particular. An evil wind blew fiercely through the city, summoned by Denkuma's powers. Clouds loomed above, and a light rain began to fall, pattering on the ground far below him. Thunder cracked, and a few forks of lightning struck the ground, creating brief flashes of light.

"How insignificant he was..." murmured Denkuma, staring down at Makurin's crumpled corpse. "Powerful, though...that transformation was rather unique; the increase in power was phenomenal."

Suddenly, an inexplicable sense of danger hit the Devil like a bomb. He had a strange feeling that he was in extreme imminent danger.

"_What the..."_

With a start, Denkuma realised the threat, reacting a second too late, not fast enough to avoid the fierce punch that impacted on his jawbone.

_CRACK!_

Denkuma gasped; black blood flew from his mouth, splattering through the air as Blitzo attacked. The Devil shouted in pain, a short yell that was cut off abruptly as he was slugged in the stomach.

"_That Blitzo...why's he so strong? Only a few minutes ago he was exhausted!"_

Denkuma stared in pure shock at the Saiyan, who had seemed to have undergone a transformation of his own. The young fighter's normally peaceful black eyes were flaming with rage, burning with an unimaginable hatred. The veins were prominent on his face, and his mouth was drawn into a furious snarl.

Blitzo's power had risen to almost double, ascending to almost match Denkuma's. The demon was so surprised at the surge that he couldn't fight back, falling under Blitzo's torrent of punches to the chest and face. Denkuma was pounded again and again by Blitzo's fists, blown back under the relentless assault.

"Y-you!" he bellowed, as blood exploded from his nose, glistening through the air and landing on Blitzo enraged face.

The Saiyan ended his chain with a massive uppercut, snapping the Devil's head back. Denkuma was thrown back, smashing into the side of a building that had miraculously survived the constant fighting. A large neon sign decorated the tower, but was dull; the electricity needed to power if had been cut off over a month ago. The sign read: "_Yotsuba and Co. Officers"._

The concrete wall cracked behind him, and Denkuma gasped as he fell out of the vertical crater, tumbling to the ground.

Mere metres above the pavement, the demon swooped around and shot back up, yelling in rage as he charged towards his equally – if not more so – angry opponent, who awaited him, hovering in a combat position. Despite this, he was unable to fully block Denkuma's punch, which smashed through his defence and sunk into his neck.

Blitzo's eyes widened at the strike, and for a few moments couldn't breathe, his windpipe temporarily sealed. Taking advantage of this, Denkuma grabbed Blitzo's ankle, and swung him around several times.

The wind roared in Blitzo's ears as he whizzed through the air. Without warning, Denkuma let go, and Blitzo was propelled through the rain, firing towards another building. A split second before hitting the structure, Blitzo somersaulted so that he was horizontal, feet first. As he hit the building, he bent his legs, negating the impact, before jumping back off the wall, launching his body back towards Denkuma, who couldn't move away in time.

"_I'll kill you!" _bellowed Blitzo.

"Curse you!" screamed Denkuma as he was tackled by Blitzo around the waist. The pair of hated enemies tumbled through the air, flying straight for the _Yotsuba_ tower. With a crash, they tore directly _through _the skyscraper, busting through the walls and out the other side.

As they rolled around, savagely fighting each other off, the sky above them darkened. It was completely out of the blue; mere seconds ago, they had been looked down upon by several dark ominous clouds, light rain falling from them. Now they clouds were gone, having simply disappeared. However, the billions of stars normally hanging in the sky were not there; the sky was completely black, as if every light had been turned off. At the same time, an unnatural silence fell over the land. The only sounds were the grunting of Denkuma and Blitzo.

"_T-that darkness!" _realised the Devil. "_It's...the Dragon! The Dragon is being summoned!"_

As this realisation his him, a pure scream of rage and sheer desperation tore from Denkuma's lipless mouth, and he violently threw Blitzo off him. As the angry Saiyan was knocked away, Denkuma's brilliant red tail whipped through the air and wrapped around Blitzo's neck, tightening viciously. Next, Denkuma pulled his tail down and pulled it free, sending Blitzo plummeting to the ground.

The Saiyan hit hard, forcing a crater into the ground. Far above, shining against the pitch black sky, Denkuma raised an arm, his palm glowing ominously.

"_SUPER DEMON FLASH!"_

The familiar black beam - twice as big as normal - burst from the Devil's hands, rocketing downwards, blasting directly to where Blitzo crouched, climbing out of the crater. The Saiyan leered towards the beam, calculating his next move instantaneously.

There would be no time for a counter-attack. Nor could he dodge. Only one option remained. Blitzo brought his arms up and caught the beam in his hands. Immediately, immense pressure weighed down on him. The sound was incredible, a continual rumble that crashed into the Saiyan's ears. To his horror, the skin on his hands began to burn; the beam was too strong. Despite his incredible power surge, fuelled by his overwhelming anger at Makurin's death, he couldn't stop this attack. It was too powerful.

"_DAMN IT! I WILL! NOT! LOSE!" _he roared, but there was nothing he could do. With a crash louder than anything Blitzo had ever heard, the black beam engulfed him. Energy was all around, burning at his skin, singing his hair.

Blitzo screamed, and blacked out.

Above, Denkuma watched as Blitzo was overtaken. As the energy hit him, it detonated, a huge explosion that sent a wave of super-heated air and smoke in all directions. With a crumbling noise, the _Yotsuba _building tipped to the side and collapsed onto Blitzo, followed by several smaller buildings. Columns of white dust billowed into the air, before settling slowly over the destroyed city.

Denkuma smiled bitterly.

"Finally, Blitzo, you have been defeated. Feel proud; you did better than your companions, as good as even Korros."

After muttering this, he let out a deep breath, and raised his fingers, wiping the blood off his face. Although their final struggle had been short, with only a few punches landing between the two of them, Denkuma was injured, despite the healing effects of the Gaman Pea.

Landing back in the present, the Devil looked towards the dark horizon.

"_I may only have a few seconds before the wish is wasted. I must hurry!"_

Whipping his fingers to his forehead, Denkuma teleported away, leaving nothing behind but a giant stretch of destruction. Few buildings remained standing, and the few that did were cracked and broken. Right in the middle lay a massive pile of debris, covering the body of Blitzo. After being blasted by Denkuma's Super Demon Flash, there was no way he would be able to survive being under the crushing weight of all those buildings.

The Saiyan stirred.

He was a wreck. Both of his legs were mangled, and his right eye was glued shut by his own drying blood. As he lay there, shattered, Blitzo's remaining eye flickered open, the eyelid barely opening. He wasn't quite dead yet.

Breathing raggedly through his nose, the Saiyan turned his head. Surely he had been crushed?

No. He hadn't.

As the _Yotsuba _building had fallen over him, the top half had crashed onto the street, directly on top of the Saiyan. But he had survived. Solely because of Denkuma himself.

The Super Demon Flash had been what had ultimately saved him, burning a crater into the street. Blitzo had been forced into the crater, safe in the pit as the _Yotsuba _landed above. The destroyed building had sealed the crater, but Blitzo had been spared death, for the moment. Blitzo sensed that he may only have minutes left before his weary body failed him.

A defiant smile crept onto Blitzo face. Denkuma wasn't safe yet; Blitzo would exact his revenge on the Devil for murdering Makurin. Shaking, the dying Saiyan's arm twitched, and his fingers slipped into his pocket, closing around a small object. Gasping in pain, Blitzo pulled his Gaman Pea out of his pocket, slipped it into his gummy mouth, and began to chew.

**000**

"_What?" _screeched Arnika. Panic overcame her instantly, overwhelming her senses. Why couldn't the Dragon accept her request?

"_This can't be happening!" _she thought desperately.

"**I cannot grant your wish," **said Azulong, his booming voice ringing over the land. **"You have made two requests at once. You must make the wishes separately."**

Arnika gasped, falling miserably to her knees. She had to choose...choose between Ferris and the population of Haven. It should be an easy decision, and she knew the answer, but Arnika couldn't bring herself to do it.

"_It would be like...like killing Ferris all over again..."_ she thought, staring around. The ground seemed to be moving up and down, her vision failing.

"**Make your choice!" **boomed Azulong. His claws twitched threateningly, and his enormous tail boomed twice against the ground.

Arnika's eyes twitched. Her mind was overloaded, beginning to shut down from the stress. They had come all this way, endured such dangers, only to fail at the very end? The Dragon would only grant one of her wishes.

"I-I can't do it!" she screamed, tears streaking down her face. "I can't kill Ferris!"

Arnika felt hands gently hold her shoulders. Old hands, but strong. Turning her head, Hamasan's warm face came into her view, slightly blurred by the moisture in her eyes.

"You _have _to do it," he said, his kind voice penetrating her frantic thoughts. "Ferris will be OK in the Other World."

Arnika gulped wetly, forcing back another sob, and stood up. Hamasan gripped her arm, aiding the young girl as she shakily rose. When Arnika was full on her feet, she gave Hamasan a weak smile.

"Thanks, Hamasan," she said. "But...I can't. I-I really liked him. How can I just abandon him?"

Hamasan shook his head firmly. "No. You _aren't _abandoning him. The Other World is safe; Ferris' spirit will exist forever. I'm sure he'd understand. From what you've told me of him in the last few months, Ferris would be willing to sacrifice himself for the people of this planet. So...you can do it."

Arnika stared into the old Namekian's warm gaze, the loving smile, and realised the truth in his words. Raising a hand, she wiped her eyes.

Everything changed.

As she moved the back of her hand across her face, washing away the tears, she felt Hamasan's grip on her arm slacken. Quickly, she lowered her hand, to see the smile on the Namekian's face gone.

His eyes were wide, and his mouth was hanging slightly open, his teeth bared. Arnika gazed into his panic-stricken pupils, confused.

"What's wrong?" she gasped.

Hamasan gestured feebly downwards, towards his midriff, and Arnika dropped her gaze.

"_Oh my God," _she mouthed.

A tiny black beam of energy was sprouting from just below his chest. It speared straight through the old man's frail green body, piercing a few centimetres below his lungs. The beam only just missed Arnika herself, shooting past her side.

The black laser faded away, and Hamasan crumpled, falling backwards. Dull purple blood dripped slowly from his wound, staining his white robe. Arnika dropped down besides him, but could only watch as the Namekian's life force drained away.

"How unfortunate. Well, I'm sorry, but it had to be done. That wish is _mine!"_

Fear clenched at Arnika's heart again, as the tall nightmare that was Denkuma stepped out of the darkness and into the ring of light created by Azulong, his finger extended. Suddenly, he gestured, and Arnika was blown off the ground, flying several metres to the side, hurled there by an unseen force. She screamed. It felt like being hit by a car.

The evil creature stepped over to Hamasan, looking down at him, a cruel grin on his face.

"I've won at last. Every one of your students has failed to defeat me, you lie dying at my feet, and the girl has kindly summoned the Dragon for me. All too easy."

Denkuma stepped over Hamasan's feeble figure, to get closer to the Dragon. The demon stopped when he heard a frail voice.

"No...until I'm dead...you haven't won anything."

Denkuma looked back over his shoulder.

"Shut it, old man. It's my turn to speak."

Hamasan gave a strained laugh. "Until...I'm dead...you haven't won...anything," he repeated. "Kill me now, and...claim victory. Kill me now..."

Denkuma was silent, but the corners of his mouth were turned up ever so slightly. Then, he shook his head.

"Do you think of me as a fool? I'm wise to your game. If I kill you, the Dragon will die too, and I won't get to be immortal. One day I'll be killed by a stronger being, and you would be the ultimate victor. Well, it won't work. I'll keep you alive for now...but as soon as my wish is granted...you're history."

Hamasan sighed, and his head dropped to the side. He was unconscious. Denkuma turned away from him, back to Azulong. To the side, Arnika was rising painfully to her hands and knees, wincing.

"Dragon!" shouted Denkuma.

Azulong turned his giant head, fangs glistening ominously. The giant spirit radiated mystique, power beyond recognition. The power to warp reality itself, to make the impossible possible.

"**What do you want of me?" **boomed the dragon.

Denkuma grinned evilly. The time had arrived. Raising his arms, the Devil spread his black fingers wide apart, so that his palms were facing out. When he spoke, his voice echoed slightly, imbued with ki and a sheer iron will. The very sound of the voice drove iron nails into Arnika's brain.

"_Grant me, Denkuma – one of the greatest Demon Lords in existence – complete and total immortality, making me free from death. Let disease, famine, and destruction bear no consequence upon my invincible body, and let the gods fear me, so that I may avert divine judgement from the Kai's themselves! Now, Dragon...grant my wish!"_

**000**

Oh-my-god, oh-my-god, oh-my-god! Has Denkuma won this war? Find out in the next chapter of Dragon Ball X!


	22. Eternal Sorrow

**Dragon Ball X**

Only a week left now until I go on camp. I'm so excited, it's gonna be awesome. Anyway, as I'm sure you know if you've read up to here, the X Gang is in a bit of a tight spot at the moment. Has Denkuma successfully made his wish? Find out...right now!

On with the chapter!

**000**

"Now, Dragon..._grant my wish!"_

Arnika's eyes widened in fear as the demon finished, his arms thrown up into the air. Denkuma's face had an awful triumphant grin pasted across it, his slitted nostrils flared. Behind him, his crimson tail writhing back and forth, whipping through the air.

The silence was deafening, the only sounds being Arnika's small gasps of pain. The girl grasped at her stomach, still aching tremendously from Denkuma's attack only a minute before.

Azulong was silent, his enormous head pointing at Denkuma, the Dragon's red eyes burning into the demon, who's fanatical sneer slowly faded, to be replaced with an impatient scowl.

"Well?" he demanded. "I made a request! Answer me!"

Arnika was just as confused as Denkuma. "_What's going on?" _she thought. The girl could hear her own heartbeat, pumping wildly, as they waited for the Dragon's response.

Finally, it came. Azulong, green scales emitting a dull yellow light, shook his gargantuan head slowly from side to side.

"**No. I will not grant your wish."**

Denkuma was completely still, his mouth twisted into a hideous snarl of hatred. The Devil fought to regain composure, but in actuality, he was almost exploding with anger and chagrin. Finally, he spoke back.

"You _won't _grant my wish? How dare you defy me, Dragon!"

"**Your wishes are of no importance to me."**

Denkuma's eyes narrowed at this display of insolence. "Tell me, you revolting slug; why won't you make me immortal? _Answer me!"_

The Dragon gazed upon the Devil without fear, and bared its fangs, a low growl issuing from it. Arnika cringed, and even Denkuma took a step back, wary of the beast. Azulong seemed content, and answered, his booming deep voice rumbling out.

"**I will only grant the wishes of the one who specifically summoned me. You did not; I care not for your wants."**

Slowly, Azulong turned its snout towards Arnika, who gasped and crawled backwards, eyes wide and mouth quivering. She felt completely insignificant under the Dragon's might, his gaze paralysing her.

"**Tell me, girl; this creature has made a request of me. Do you want me to comply?"**

Instantly, Arnika realised the opportunity before her. Quelling her fear for the moment, she tried to speak, but nothing came out. Swallowing, she tried again.

"No...please don't make him immortal! He's...he's too dangerous."

Denkuma watched the entire exchange in disbelief. His dreams and ultimate goal of universal conquest were slipping away before his eyes. Denkuma stared with fury at the small girl, quivering on the ground, and growled.

"Close your mouth, you little _bitch!" _he shouted. With a swish, his arm rose, extending in front of the demon's chest, his hand slumped. Arnika watched in apprehension as the arm pointed at her, and completely froze as the drooping hand shot up, fingers extended, so that the demon's palm was facing directly at her.

"Girl...I offer you...a choice..."

Arnika was completely paralysed in fear. Denkuma stared at her, yellow eyes bulging wildly and his mouth drawn into a spiteful snarl.

"Tell the Dragon to make me immortal, or I'll kill you...right here and right now. Don't think you can wriggle your way out of this one, child. I'll squash you like a bug unless you do exactly as I say. Now..._make me...IMMORTAL!"_

The Devil's palm glowed bright yellow, a small ki ball materialising in front of his hand. It shimmered, humming as it hung suspended, ready to fire into Arnika's body at any moment.

Arnika panicked, unable to move or react in any way. There was nothing she could do to stop Denkuma from his mass genocide on the planet. The Devil was unstoppable, beyond any other in terms of power. It seemed that no one could defeat him. Least of all her.

"_I'm useless," _she thought. "_I can't fight Denkuma, and now I can't even stop him from making his wish...what can I do?"_

Arnika dropped her head, tears pouring from her eyes, clamping them shut. Sobbing, the girl shook, despair wracking her body. She was about to die, she knew that.

"Do it!" roared Denkuma, his deep voice splitting through her body. The demon's tail smashed against the ground, crushing the dirt effortlessly, and his evil power penetrated Arnika's mind. She panicked, and raised her head to the Dragon, screaming out the first thing that popped into her head.

"I wish that Blitzo were here!"

Arnika fell backwards, writhing on the ground. At the same time, Denkuma gave a scream of outrage, a bellow that echoed through the sky, rolling over the fields.

Arnika gasped, grabbing at her own head, her fingers sinking into her hair, clutching at her skull, a above her, Azulong's eyes glowed bright red, two rubies of light that shimmered against the black sky.

"**You wish has been granted," **it boomed.

Arnika screeched in horror, a continuous scream of sorrow. The realisation of what she had done hit her like a train. By using the wish, she'd condemned every person on Haven –including her father, as well as Ferris, the Eternal Warriors, and the Saiyans, and finally her brother – to everlasting death. The wish was wasted; she could no longer bring anyone back to life. They would be dead...forever.

"No!" she moaned. "I killed them all! What have I done?"

Meanwhile, Denkuma was having immense difficulty restraining himself, his self-control flying out the window. Within seconds, he was foaming at the mouth, eyes flashing with hatred and fury.

"You wasted the wish, you foolish little girl. That's it; _you die!"_

The small ki ball hanging in front of Denkuma's palm pulsed, doubling in size. The glowing energy illuminated the Devil's twisted face.

"CURSE _YOU!"_

Light burst from the demon's hand, preparing to blast the sphere into the girl's body.

"_I can use the Dragon Balls again in a year's time," _thought the demon. "_But this time, no one will be able to interfere. Especially not this pathetic child; I'll destroy her entirely!"_

From the ground, where she was still lying on the ground, Arnika's eyes widened, the despair replaced by pure terror. She shook where she lay, frozen in fear, unable to dodge or move at all. All she could do was look over at Hamasan's unconscious body lay, shivering.

"_I'm sorry...please forgive me..."_

Arnika flicked her head back to the enraged demon, and stared death in the face. Suddenly, everything went quiet.

**000**

Denkuma wasn't holding back one bit. He had fought so hard for this, for immortality, for his dream. He had killed hated enemies to summon this Dragon and now his plot had been foiled by a little girl who had no combat experience whatsoever. That was the last straw: she must be removed from this dimension.

Feeling his rage inside him, he channelled it all into his hand, intending on unleashing the most devastating attack he had ever performed. She deserved it for destroying his plans.

Suddenly, everything went quiet.

Denkuma gaped in shock at his arm, at the hand that had sprouted from nowhere and latched on, tightening into a crushing grip. The hand was attached to an arm, which went out of Denkuma's line of sight, but he didn't need to look at the owner. He already knew it was. The Dragon had honoured Arnika's wish.

Slowly, his rage died, to be oddly replaced by a bitter amusement and respect.

"I must say, Blitzo, I'm impressed." Denkuma's voice was quiet, his emotions slowly dying. "I truly thought that you were dead this time."

The reply was short, but carried more momentum than any other sentence that Denkuma had ever heard, and was filled with pure hatred.

"Leave...her...alone."

Denkuma finally turned to look at the Saiyan, who was still gripping onto the demon's arm, fingers tightly clenched.

"So, you've returned. What are you planning on doing now? After all, I've already beaten you several times. What hope do you have?"

"More than you."

This response was so unexpected that it threw Denkuma off for a few seconds, but he quickly recovered as he realised the absurdity of such a comment.

"More than me? How ridiculous! I've already wiped the floor with you before, and I can do it again! Hehe...hehahaha! Hahahaha-aaarrggh-RRRGGGHHRR!"

Denkuma's crazed laughter slowly changed to gasps of pain as Blitzo tightened his grip on the demon's arm. The Saiyan's strength was unbelievable; the pain tore through Denkuma like a dart as Blitzo's fingers grew tighter and tighter around the Archfiend's arm muscles, digging into the skin like knives.

"Aaaarggh...grrrrr-AARRG!"

Denkuma's yellow lidless eyes bulged, he could barely move, the pain was so great. Somehow, this simple act of squeezing Denkuma's muscle was paralysing his entire body.

Arnika watched in a mixture of fear and amazement, as Blitzo reduced the terrifying Denkuma to a quivering, groaning mess. With a small squelching noise, Blitzo's fingers punctured Denkuma's skin; black blood squirted out of the holes, splattering onto Blitzo's fingers, but he didn't seem to care.

"What-what are you?" gasped Denkuma, cringing in shock and pain.

Blitzo made no sound, but reached up and latched onto Denkuma's upper arm with his spare hand. Grunting with the effort, the Saiyan heaved through the air and _threw _the demon over his shoulder. Denkuma flew several metres before he smashed into a large boulder, which cracked and then crumbled to pieces under the impact. Almost a minute later, the Devil climbed out of the debris, to see the terrifying sight of Blitzo, fully charged, a yellow pulsing aura surrounding him. He was simply oozing with energy, and hatred filled his eyes.

"I am a member of the greatest fighting race in the universe! I am a Saiyan!"

"A Saiyan?" spat Denkuma. He knew of the species, having encountered them before coming to Haven. The monkeys that he had met had died painfully.

The demon straightened up, wincing involuntarily as the action sent a bolt of pain through his body. Furiously, he blocked out the pain, and launched himself through the air, a black tail of ki shooting from his feet.

"I've had enough of your meddling, Blitzo. _DIE!"_

Denkuma drew back his arm even as he flew, and a beam of black energy boomed from his hand, searing through the air towards Blitzo, who faced it unflinchingly. At the last second, his eyes widened and a scream burst from his mouth. The yellow aura around him expanded in all directions, and simply blew the beam away, the energy dissipating into the air. Denkuma staggered backwards, horrified.

Blitzo took off, rocketing effortlessly towards the terrified demon, reaching him within the span of a single second. Denkuma gasped in surprise, his gaze flickering downwards towards his enemy, who stared back with steely black eyes. Before Denkuma could even blink, Blitzo's fist struck him in the cheek. The Archfiend cried in shock, as his head snapped sideways, blood flying from his gaping mouth. The force behind the punch was incredible; it rocked Denkuma to his core.

Denkuma took another few steps back, mouth wide in surprise. How could this be? Blitzo's power seemed to have doubled, rising to even higher than Denkuma's. Small rivers of blood trickled from the corners of Denkuma's mouth, running down his neck and onto his chest. His jaw ached.

And the entire time, Blitzo stared with those awful black eyes, unblinking and relentless.

"Y-y-y-y-you...how did you get so strong?" whispered Denkuma. Blitzo didn't answer, but simply faded away into the air. Denkuma gasped, but didn't move away in time, and Blitzo's elbow sunk into his stomach. The demon was folded in half, spit flying from his throat, and Blitzo pulled his arm from Denkuma, straightening up and taking a step back. The Devil himself took several short steps back, clutching at his stomach in pain.

"You monster!" he gasped, coughing violently. Blitzo didn't answer, only stared at the demon, eyes cold. Denkuma snarled. "_Answer me!"_

He lunged forwards, attempting a punch. Blitzo jumped. Denkuma's punch sailed under him, and Blitzo hurled back down, legs outstretched, ready to kick.

"Surprise," grunted Denkuma, and disappeared before the Saiyan could hit him. Before Blitzo knew it, Denkuma was behind him, swinging his leg. Blitzo yelled in pain as Denkuma kicked him in the back, and was knocked to the ground. In a flash, he rolled, leaping back to his feet, throwing out his arm, fist clenched.

"Burning Dart Beam!"

A yellow beam burst from Blitzo's fist, pulsing straight for Denkuma, who gasped, whipping his arms up into an X shape. The beam struck the very middle of the X, where Denkuma's arms met, and exploded. The force of the attack pushed the Devil back several metres, his feet digging into the ground. Long tracks were carved into the dirt, and a massive dust cloud was thrown up.

Crouching off to the side, by Azulong, Arnika gasped as the two enemies struggled. Tears were still streaking down her cheeks, cutting through the mud and grime that covered her face. Terrified, she watched as the dust billowed out. Blitzo stood off to the side, glaring at the spot where Denkuma had been last, now covered by the cloud.

"_He's...so different..."_ though Arnika, gazing at the Saiyan. "_So...distant. And his power's soared; he's just as good as Denkuma! Maybe there is some hope still..."_

Arnika's thoughts were cut shot as a furious roar tore from the cloud, and the dust was blown away, buffeted into the air as Denkuma shot towards Blitzo, who was caught by surprise. The Devil grabbed Blitzo by the throat, and began to speak.

"If we fight now, the shockwaves could kill the old Namekian for good, and I won't be able to make my wish when the Dragon Balls are revived. So, if you don't mind, let's take this fight elsewhere..."

And with that final word, Denkuma extended two fingers and placed them on his forehead, concentrating hard. Watching in shock, Arnika gasped as the air around the two fighters shimmered, and they were gone.

It was a good five minutes before Arnika moved again. She simply gazed, transfixed, at the spot where Blitzo had been mere seconds before, until Denkuma had teleported them both away.

"_Do it, Blitzo. I screwed up, but maybe you won't."_

With that thought, Arnika was reminded of her mistake; wasting the wish to summon Blitzo. She hung her head, beginning to cry again.

"_I-I can't believe I did that...Now no one will be able to come back..."_

The young girl frowned ; something was disturbing her. Something near, that shouldn't be there.

Her mouth slightly open in realisation, Arnika turned her head, looking up as she did so.

The Dragon was still there.

"But...what?" she murmured, confused. "Shouldn't Azulong have gone back into the balls and scattered?"

As Arnika looked at the Dragon, it brought its big head down, looking at her with those red eyes, each the size of the girl's entire head.

"**What is your next wish?"**

Arnika gasped. Had she just heard Azulong correctly? "What? My next wish? What are you talking about? Do you mean that you can grant more than one wish?"

The Dragon dipped its head once.

"**That is correct. I can grant a total of three wishes. Now, you're testing my patience; what is your next wish?"**

Arnika's eyes widened. They were saved.

**000**

Blitzo gasped, twisting his head around. The landscape was completely different, the distant farmhouse and the nearby fences gone. Instead, he was standing on a massive plain, springy grass underfoot. Small boulders and various sized rocks covered the ground. Blitzo's eyes slowly widened in recognition.

"_I've been here before..."_

In a flash, it hit him. This was the place; the original landing site of their ship, before Cuo had destroyed it. This was the place where Ferris had been killed, and where Blitzo himself had destroyed Cuo in retaliation.

But where was Denkuma?

The answer to that question came almost immediately, as a grey shape zoomed into Blitzo's field of view. Blitzo tilted his head, and Denkuma's foot sailed by, missing Blitzo's neck by centimetres. Instinctively, he punched to the right, but Denkuma had already flown by, but as Blitzo watched the demon skidded to a stop, fists clenched.

"So, Blitzo. Here we are. The location of our final battle. It all ends here; one of us dies, right now."

"I know," answered Blitzo, taking a fighting stance. "And it'll be you!"

He blasted forwards, and swung his leg in a wide arc towards Denkuma, who ducked just in time, before reaching up and grabbing Blitzo's foot. The Saiyan cringed, and Denkuma grinned.

"See you _around," _said Denkuma, and began to spin, heaving Blitzo around as well. The Saiyan yelled as he hurtled around in circles, but Denkuma didn't let go. Angry, Blitzo struck out with his other leg, hitting Denkuma in the chin. The demon cried out in pain, stumbling backwards, and his grip on Blitzo's leg loosened. The Saiyan acted quickly, ripping his ankle out of the Devil's grasp, before landing. Taking the opportunity, Blitzo sprung up, his fist cracking across Denkuma's face. The demon was thrown backwards, flying through the air and smashing into a boulder, which shattered.

"Face it, Denkuma!" shouted Blitzo, as the demon climbed gingerly to his feet, holding his left arm. Blood welled beneath Denkuma's fingers. "I've grown stronger than you. I get more powerful with every one of your attacks."

"H-how..." cursed Denkuma. "How are you getting stronger, it's simply not possible!"

The demon charged at Blitzo, and they clashed. Denkuma was struggling to punch Blitzo with both hands, who was holding the Devil's fists, preventing the attacks from breaking through.

"Two things you should know about Saiyans, Denkuma!" grunted Blitzo, letting go and firing a set of punches, each of which cracked Denkuma in the stomach and chest. With every punch, Denkuma let out a small cry of pain, spit flying from his mouth. Angrily, he grabbed Blitzo's fists, and they were back in the grapple, only this time their roles were reversed.

"And what are they?" Denkuma spat, and to his surprise, Blitzo actually managed to shove him backwards, pushing him a few metres across the field.

"Well," answered the Saiyan. "First of all, our Power Level's increase whenever we recover from a near death experience."

Denkuma grimaced as he discovered the source of his enemies new strength, strength that Denkuma now realised he had given him.

"_The little bastard must have hidden a Gaman Pea, which he ate after I left him for dead."_

"And what's the second thing?" growled the demon, still struggling to hold onto Blitzo's fists, which were drawing closer and closer to the Devil's face.

Blitzo grinned, and leaned in close.

"The second thing is...Saiyan's don't show mercy to their enemies..."

Denkuma's face contorted in momentary confusion, before his lidless eyes bulged. Before the demon could react, Blitzo broke straight through his guard and slammed his fists into Denkuma's face. The Devil bellowed in pain and flew backwards, but Blitzo was already behind him, kicking the demon in the back. Denkuma crashed to the ground face-down, but slowly climbed back up.

"Y-you...you're _so _dead, you filthy monkey," growled Denkuma. Blitzo raised a taunting eyebrow in response, causing Denkuma to explode in rage. "I'll kill you!"

With a boom, the opponents met in the air, trading blows back and forth, so fast they were blurs. Despite the furious exchange, Blitzo gave a grim grin, flashing back to the battle with Cuo.

"_This is over..."_

**000**

"Azulong!" cried Arnika, lifting her face to the Dragon. Tears were still running down her cheeks, although now it from relief and joy rather than that clinging misery. "I want you to bring back every single one of Denkuma's victims. Bring everybody who suffered under Denkuma's reign of destruction back from the dead, fully restored. Dragon...bring them back to life!"

Azulong dipped his head again, and Arnika gazed in awe as the Dragon's eyes glowed bright red, the light shining against the green of his scales. **"Your wish has been granted."**

Arnika gasped in joy, a big smile stretching over her face. Geani...Mataro...Arasha...Korros...they'd all come back.

"_And you," _thought Arnika, as a memory of her Father's face loomed into her mind. A warm feeling grew in the girl's heart and spread through her entire body. "_I love you, Dad."_

**000**

Geani drew in a deep breath, a thousand thoughts and emotions thundering into his brain at once. Amongst all the tumult was one idea, a notion that ruled above all the others.

"I'm alive," he murmured, and heard the voice issuing from within him. The sound was heaven upon his ears, which he felt delicately with his fingertips. Slowly, Geani moved his hands from his ears to his face, feeling the skin beneath his touch. To his surprise, his hands were glowing a with a pulsing blue aura.

"What's this?" he asked quietly to no one in particular, and sat up, staring down at his own body, which was also glowing blue. As he noticed immediately, the stab wound from Denkuma's sword was completely sealed. There wasn't even a scar, and even his armour had been fully repaired. The swordmaster realised that the wish to bring everybody back must have been made.

"Excellent," he said, delighted. "We did it...but what of the others?"

Turning his head, Geani looked at his surroundings, to the ground he was sitting on, and his mouth dropped. He was sitting upon the mountain of corpses, every one of them surrounded by the same blue light, glowing dully in the night. Geani looked on in wonder.

"Geani?"

Geani twisted his head at the voice, and saw a heavily muscled man with a murky green singlet gingerly climb to his feet. Mataro. Geani rose as well, and ran over to his companion, helping him up. Mataro looked at his own body, disbelief in his eyes.

"Completely healed," he murmured. "The work of the Dragon Balls, I'm assuming. The wish must have been made."

"Our bodies have been restored and life has been breathed back into them," said Geani, and pulled Mataro into an embrace. "But what of Arasha? Where is _her _body?"

Mataro looked sad. "Her body was completely destroyed by my attack. Will she still be brought back?"

Geani opened his mouth to answer, but closed it again straight away, a small smile on his face. Mataro followed Geani's gaze into the air to see a large sphere of blue light, which faded to reveal Arasha inside. The female fighter looked around in wonder and smiled, before turning her gaze to her companions.

"We've been restored," she said. "A second chance at life...we should be thankful."

Geani nodded, but gave a small cry as the mountain of corpses below shifted. The swordsman looked around desperately, and gasped as he saw the bodies begin to rise into the air. Quickly, the three Eternal Warriors flew skyward, swooping out over the lip of Mt Fowl, and looked back in.

"Incredible," breathed Arasha.

Life. Life was everywhere, every one of Denkuma's victims returning to life. And then, they rose. Millions of them. The Ageless Fighters gazed in awe as the citizens of Haven shot from Mt Fowl, shooming out of the crater in flocks. Blue aura surrounded every one of them, raising them into the air and levitating them. Cries of wonder and delight split the air.

"We're alive!"

"I can smell fresh air!"

"This is a miracle!"

Geani drew in breath as the millions of Haviens rose higher and higher, into the clouds. With minutes the crater was vacated, Denkuma's victims flying through the air to their homes, eyes dazzling. Life had returned to Haven, and the entire planet shone with the light of the blue aura. It was a marvel to behold.

Geani, Mataro, and Arasha were soon the only ones left, hovering above the mountain. As they watched, the aura faded, and they were fully alive once more.

"So..." began Mataro. "Has Denkuma been defeated, or the battle still on? Where are the Saiyans?"

Arasha closed her eyes and cast her mental gaze over the planet. Within seconds she had found them.

"Denkuma's still alive," she gasped, eyes flying open. By now, Geani and Mataro had both located the Devil too.

"But...he's fighting someone!" exclaimed Mataro. "Is...Is that Blitzo?"

Geani's eyes widened. "Yes...but what power! He's even stronger than Denkuma himself. This is phenomenal. We're finally in for a winning chance."

**000**

Blitzo snapped his head from side to side, dodging the punches that Denkuma threw his way, before replying with a few of his own. The Devil was almost frothing at the mouth, but try as he might, he couldn't beat Blitzo, who's rise in strength was unbelievable.

"Curse you!" he screamed, and drew back his fist for a final punch, but before he could go through with the attack, his eyes bulged, and he gasped. Blitzo also reacted, staring around wildly. Both of them had sensed what had happened at once.

"What the...?" gasped Denkuma. "All these energy signatures...this can't be!"

"_Yes!" _thought Blitzo, as he realised what was happening. "_Arnika must have wished everybody back! We succeeded!"_

The Saiyan looked confidently at his enemy, who was gazing around in shock, and his face turned stony, black eyes turning cold once more as he beheld the Devil. "It's time to end this! You're through!"

Blitzo flew forwards, and his fist slammed into Denkuma's cheek, and the demon was blown backwards through the air, crying in pain.

"Arg! How dare you!"

Blitzo ignored Denkuma's accusations, and unleashed everything he had on the demon, Punches, kicks...even headbutts. Denkuma screamed in pain again and again under the onslaught.

"_You're about to die, Denkuma. Right here on this great field of victory...just like Cuo. It all ends now!"_

At that moment, a memory flashed into Blitzo's mind, as he recalled a voice. Hamasan's voice, stating the prophecy that the elderly Namekian had made before this whole fight had began. It seemed like days ago that Hamasan had made the prediction, but Blitzo knew that the old alien had made the prophecy less than twenty-four hours before.

"_The events of the past shall re-occur,_

_History shall repeat itself,_

_And Haven will find peace."_

And instantly, Blitzo understood its meaning. He understood the history that was to repeat. And with a scream of rage, Blitzo spun in the air to gain momentum, and then delivered a shattering horizontal kick.

It sheared straight through Denkuma's legs.

Denkuma screamed, an awful piercing cry that blasted through Blitzo's eardrums. Black blood literally pissed from Denkuma's leg stumps, as the grey limbs tumbled through the air. Denkuma's eyes were bugging right out of his skull, his mouth open as wide as it would go, his jaw almost tearing apart. Before Blitzo, Denkuma's image flickered back and forth, morphing into Cuo and then back to Denkuma, as history repeated itself.

Suddenly, the scream petered out, and Denkuma fell backwards through the air, crashing to the ground below, his strength deserting him. Desperately, arms scrabbling, the demon heaved himself across the ground, pulling himself over to a boulder, leaning back against it. The Devil's grey chest heaved, and blood poured from his mouth, as well as his legs, soaking the grass beneath him, dyeing it black.

Denkuma stared up in fear, following Blitzo as he descended down to Haven. Denkuma quivered; the Saiyan's energy levels were rising higher and higher. His face was completely emotionless as he stared the broken demon.

Denkuma had been defeated.

Now to finish the job...

Blitzo landed on the ground. Flames danced in his eyes, and he placed his arms at diagonal angles to the ground, palms facing forwards. Then, he charged up.

_The events of the past shall re-occur..._

"KEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEN..."

A pulsing yellow sphere appeared in each of Blitzo's hands, light shining from the orbs as they throbbed with energy.

"N-no..." murmured Denkuma, barely conscious. "Stop it, you...you monster."

_History shall repeat itself..._

"SEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIII..."

Blitzo raised his arms, bringing them in front of his chest. The energy spheres came too, before meeting in front of Blitzo's chest. The two orbs merged together, doubling in size. Rings of light echoed out from the orb, and it swelled even larger.

"_It is over. Die, you bastard!" _thought Blitzo, as his strongest attack finished charging.

_And Haven will find peace._

_"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!"_

**000**

And it's over at last. Denkuma's finally been destroyed, and Haven's saved. I bet that you'd all forgotten about Hamasan's prophecy ;)

Well, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I don't think it's as good as I could have gotten it, but I'm rather pressed for time since I need to finish this arc by next Sunday, since that's when I leave. I can't wait, camp's gonna be awesome. HUZZAH!

Only one chapter left to go now. I guess that I'll see you all in the next chapter. Join me in the telling of the finale of Dragon Ball X...well, not the ultimate finale, it's only the end of this arc. Anyway...farewell for now!


	23. The Last Wish

**Dragon Ball X**

And here it is; the final chapter of Dragon Ball X. It's been a long journey, and as of two chapters ago became my longest story, longer than Aura Adventure, which is _supposed _to be my main fic. Oh well...I'm gonna focus on AA for a bit after I finish this arc. I'm happy to say that I've made the deadline that I made about finishing before I go on camp; probably the first one that I've ever kept ;)

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention it at the end of last chapter, but did anyone notice a theme about Denkuma and offering people choices? I made that a central part of his character to highlight his sadistic personality. Not sure if anyone noticed it, but...it's there.

Now...ON WITH THE CHAPTER!

**000**

Zeang felt it as he flew; the evil aura that had been covering the entire planet was lifting, the horrible feeling in Zeang's heart fading.

"Oh my," he whispered. "He did it!"

Zeang had sensed Blitzo and Denkuma's struggle immediately, and for a few moments was so shocked that he almost fell right out of the air. But now...Denkuma had been destroyed, completely disintegrated by Blitzo's overwhelming Kensei-Gan. The Saiyan's Power Level had been enormous, rising beyond even the Devil's. And now Denkuma had been destroyed at last.

"Zeang!"

The cry reached the alien's ears, and he turned his enormous head to see Kenta flying straight for him, Rhuna draped unconscious over his shoulders. Zeang's stomach leapt into throat as he saw Rhuna's leg; it was bleeding, smashed apart.

"What happened?" Zeang asked desperately, as he took the Saiyan girl from Kenta, and together they both descended to the ground.

Kenta was exhausted. "Makurin told me to take her and go. Then he made some sort of white energy ball and used it as a moon."

"I know," said Zeang. "I felt him transform."

The alien inspected Rhuna's leg, completely clueless about what to do.

"I don't know how to heal this," he said, but Kenta held out his hand. Sitting in his palm was a tiny green ball.

"Give her this."

Zeang mentally slapped himself; how could he have forgotten about the Gaman Peas? Taking the Pea from Kenta, he forced open Rhuna's mouth and dropped it in.

"She can't chew it if she's unconscious," said Kenta, but Zeang simply smiled. His eyes glowed blue, and using his psychic abilities, manipulated Rhuna's jaw, chewing the healing vegetable. Then he massaged her throat until the Saiyan girl swallowed.

For a few seconds, nothing happened, but then Rhuna's eyes flew open and she sat up violently, panting heavily. She looked at Zeang and Kenta, crouched over her, and then at the dark sky, darkened by the Dragon's presence.

"What's going on?" she mumbled.

Zeang answered. "Arnika summoned the Dragon and wished all the dead Haviens back."

Rhuna frowned. "Where's Denkuma?"

Zeang and Kenta exchanged glances. "Blitzo killed him," said Kenta.

Rhuna's face changed, understanding and awe dawning on her face. "Wow..."

"Come on," said Zeang, pulling Rhuna to her feet, and together the three of them hovered into the air. "We need to get back to Arnika; she's waiting for us."

**000**

Makurin wondered the streets, staring up at the pitch black sky. Buildings were still crumbling around him, but he ignored them, concentrating on the massive energy levels on the other side of the planet, where Denkuma had teleported with Blitzo. The now tail-less Saiyan grew more and more dumbstruck as he felt Blitzo match the Devil blow for blow, before finally overwhelming him in an incredible blast.

Makurin clenched his fists.

"_Damn you, Blitzo," _he thought. "_You always rise to the occasion, don't you?"_

The Saiyan smiled grimly as he thought about his friend's new power. Once again, Blitzo had somehow managed to overcome his enemy, much like when he had killed Cuo.

Lost in thought, he reached the edge of a giant crater, formed when Denkuma had destroyed Korros. As he realised this, he remembered something.

"_Where's Korros?"_

As if on cue, a humming noise reached Makurin's ears, and the Saiyan looked in the direction of the source. Suddenly, a large blue sphere materialised above the crater, before disappearing to reveal the Namekian.

Korros' face was pure shock, as he stared transfixed down at his own body, before raising his hands and looking at them closely.

"I'm alive," he murmured. "I've been given another chance..."

Makurin raised an arm, and caught Korros' attention. The Namekian swooped down, landing beside the Saiyan. The two aliens looked each other in the eye, respect flashing between them.

"We're back," said Korros eventually.

"I noticed," replied Makurin, gesturing towards himself. Silence rose again, but then Makurin spoke, almost reluctantly. "You did good...before, that is."

Korros nodded slowly. "Thank-you."

Silence.

Makurin frowned. "Hang on..."

"What is it, Saiyan?" asked Korros.

"I...I can sense your energy..." said Makurin slowly. "But...didn't the old guardian, Azimuth, make your signatures impossible to detect?"

Korros nodded slowly. "He did...perhaps..."

"Perhaps what?"

Korros grinned grimly. "I see now. Since I died, and was brought back, the enchantments that were cast on my body have been broken. My ki is no longer hidden."

"Does that mean that you'll age now?"

Korros nodded. "Yes. My Eternal Youth is no more."

Makurin closed his eyes, sensing the planet. "It's true. I can sense Geani, Mataro, and Arasha."

Korros opened his mouth to answer, but closed it quite suddenly, looking back over his shoulder into the sky.

"The Dragon is summoned," he finally answered. "Return to Arnika; she is with Azulong now. I'll go get Blitzo."

Makurin nodded, and flew off into the air, soaring over the shattered skyscrapers. Korros watched him go, and then took off in the opposite direction.

**000**

Arnika stared at the horizon, face alive with joy. Even she had felt Blitzo's energy, and felt Denkuma's disappear.

"_You...you're incredible!"_

"**I'm still here," **said the Dragon, whipping its tail against the ground. There was a loud crack, and Arnika snapped back around, looking at the Dragon again.

"Oh..." she said. "I'm sorry...Please; can you bring Ferris, the Havien who died saving the planet from the alien Cuo, back to life?"

Azulong seemed to be considering for a few moments, and then his booming voice rang across the land once more.

"**The wish could be granted...However, I will not grant it. My creator is weak; if I use my powers to grant your wish, the strain could kill him, and I will be no more."**

Arnika gasped in fear; she had completely forgotten about Hamasan. The elderly Namekian had been impaled by a laser fired by Denkuma. Desperately, she flung herself across the clearing towards where Hamasan lay. He had awoken at last, but sweat covered his face, and purple blood was slowly draining from his wound.

"Hamasan!" sobbed Arnika, tears beginning to fall. The two of them had grown very close over the past few months, and Arnika was heartbroken.

"Arnika..." Hamasan croaked. He gave a weary smile, and a slow blink. "You still need to...wish your friend back, but I'm too weak. Tell Azulong...to go back into the Dragon Balls for now. This way, the Dragon Balls...will only turn to stone...for six months."

Arnika's eyes widened, as she did some quick calculations in her head. Ferris had to be wished back within a year from his death. They had been in seclusion for about four and a half months...if the Dragon Balls turned to stone for six months, then that would leave them just enough time to get Ferris back. Quickly, she turned to Azulong, looking back up at the Dragon's enormous head.

"Azulong!" she cried. "I want you to...to go back into the Dragon Balls for six months, without granting the third wish! Can you do that?"

Azulong nodded.

"**I can. Farewell for now!"**

The Dragon exploded into light, and with a great whooshing noise was sucked straight back into the seven Balls, which rose into the air. The Balls were in a ring, which was spinning around rapidly, making it impossible to focus on any one ball for more than a second. Suddenly, the Balls split, separating and zooming through the sky in different directions, vanishing within seconds. Above her, the sky lightened; it was still night time, but the complete darkness that the Dragon's presence had created was gone.

Hamasan chuckled croakily, and closed his eyes slowly, but didn't open them again. Arnika made a small panicked noise in her throat, but then relaxed. Hamasan was still alive.

"Thank God," she muttered, but then her eyes rolled back, and the Havien girl passed out.

**000**

In unison, Geani, Mataro and Arasha swooped down through the sky, wind whipping past them, and they caught sight of the field that Arnika and Hamasan were in. Geani gasped as he saw another trio land just ahead; Zeang, Rhuna, and Kenta had just arrived as well. As he watched, another figure arrived; Makurin.

The Eternal Warrior landed only a few seconds after the others, and they all watched as Kenta dashed forwards, pulling his unconscious sister into his embrace, stroking her hair.

"She's OK, Kenta," said Rhuna gently. "Just exhausted."

Geani's blood ran cold as he saw the body lying next to Arnika's, and he gasped.

"Hamasan!"

The swordmaster dropped to his knees beside the Namekian, inspecting his wound. Desperately, he tried to mop up all the blood, but failed. As he struggled – Mataro and Arasha watching in fear – Hamasan's eyes quivered, and he woke up again. A sad smile crossed the old alien's face.

"It's no use. I'm finished..."

Geani shook his head wildly, losing his composure for the first time in over a century. "What are you talking about? How could you say that?"

Hamasan coughed, and looked at his old student. "I can say it...because I know it's true. I've accepted my fate. You should accept it too..."

Geani opened his mouth to argue, but was cut off by another cry.

"_Hamasan!"_

Geani leapt to his feet as Korros fired down from the sky. In his arms hung Blitzo's unconscious body, limp in the Namekian's arms. Korros placed the exhausted Saiyan roughly on the ground and crouched down beside Hamasan.

"What happened to you?" he asked desperately. Behind him, Geani, Mataro and Arasha stood close, fear in their eyes. Rhuna, Makurin and Zeang looked on sadly from a short distance away, sensing the Namekian's end was near. Kenta was still kneeling on the ground with Arnika in his grasp. Blitzo laid beside them.

Hamasan coughed violently again. "Denkuma got to me...I'm sorry, Korros. I was too weak."

"No! You weren't weak!" cried Korros. His pent-up emotions were pouring out at last, his heart opening up. "You were the strongest of us all!"

Hamasan smiled. "Maybe in your eyes...but I was weak. And now...my time in this realm is done..."

Korros gasped. "Leave? But...we're only just free! Denkuma's gone! You can't die now!"

The younger Namekian glanced around wildly. "Someone...does anybody have a Gaman Pea left?"

"I do."

Zeang hurried forwards, pulling the only remaining Gaman Pea from his pocket, and he pressed it into Korros' hand. The Namekian stared at the alien for a single second in thanks, and then turned back to Hamasan, holding out the Pea.

"Take it. Eat the Pea...please!"

Hamasan closed his eyes and shook his head. "It's not my fate to do so...my destiny lies elsewhere."

"Then fuse with me!" shouted Korros pleadingly.

"No...My destiny is in the Other World. But before I go...there's something to be done."

Summoning all of his strength, Hamasan raised his arm and placed it on Korros' chest. There was a bright flash, and a wave of air seemed to run up his arm and into Korros' body. The warrior gasped, his mouth hanging open as he felt a new power enter him.

"What...what is this?" he whispered.

Hamasan gave a final smile. "There...my son...the Dragon Balls have been passed on to you. I name you the new guardian of Haven...protect this planet well, my son." Hamasan's voice grew strained, and his eyes were closed. His head fell. "T-Take care."

And with that, the old Namekian passed away at last.

"He's...He's gone!" whispered Arasha, and rested her head on Mataro's shoulder, tears streaming as her master died. Mataro looked devastated, and Geani stared without blinking at the lifeless body of Hamasan. But no one was more broken than the green fighter leaning over the old Namekian. As his Father passed into the void, Korros lowered his head and wept.

**000**

**6 Months Later**

**000**

Arnika held her breath as she placed the last Dragon Ball next to the others. As the seven Balls finally returned to one another, they began to pulse, glowing slightly under the bright sun, which reflected off their shiny surfaces back into Arnika's eyes as she stood back up. The sky above was a bright and happy blue; not a single cloud in the sky.

"Here we go," the girl said, looking over at Kenta.

They were just out of town, on the grassy plain before the cliff that fell to the sea. So many months before, Makurin had destroyed a giant meteor with Grenadier Shockwave a mere five hundred metres away. The smell of the salty water filled Arnika's nostrils.

Everybody was there; Arnika, Kenta, and their father Don, who had been brought back to life along with everybody else. The scientist had been overjoyed to see his children again, having believed them to be dead for months. Standing near Don was Korros, his arms folded. Hamasan's old turban was wrapped around his head, hiding the Namekian's antennae. The fierce warrior had opened up a lot over the last six months, but still preferred to be alone at times. Despite this, Korros was proving to be a loyal and valuable friend.

To the side, standing in their usual line, was Geani, Arasha, and Mataro. Now that Denkuma had been destroyed, there was no longer any reason to hide underground, although all three of them still trained vigorously. Despite this, they had all found other interests; Geani proved to be an immense well of information, reading countless books on history and making his own additions, and on occasion, corrections. After all, he had lived through a lot of it. Meanwhile, Arasha had discovered a spectacular talent in cooking, creating delicious meals with every attempt. Her name was becoming a rather popular one amongst the food critics in the city. And finally, Mataro played various sports, and had even landed a few parts in plays and TV shows as a skilled actor. However, his favourite pastime was going on the internet and playing with technology.

Kenta, meanwhile, had begun to write a book about the war against Denkuma, starting from when the Saiyan's arrived on the planet. The Saiyan's - as well as Zeang, Geani, Mataro, and Arasha – all insisted that their names be changed. Kenta had complied, giving them all rather exotic names that made their eyebrows rise.

Zeang, on the other hand, aided Don and Arnika with their inventions, making corrections and testing various creations. Still, the duo managed to trip him up several times with machines that even he couldn't fathom, and loved nothing more than outsmarting him. During these times, Zeang tended to fold his arms and grumble a lot, but he secretly enjoyed the challenges.

And finally, the three Saiyans did what they did best; trained endlessly, sparring with one another and occasionally destroying Don's gravity chamber. Still, with the threat of Denkuma gone, the Saiyans had an opportunity to ease up on the fighting for a while. Of course, being Saiyan's, they didn't.

And all of them had helped in the cleanup after Denkuma's short reign. Many cities on the planet had been razed to the ground by the Devil, but with the help of nearly every single person on the planet, things were looking hopeful. A good third of the cities had been almost rebuilt already; experts estimated that Haven would be back to normal within another two or three years.

But there was still something left undone; their original task still hadn't been fulfilled...until now.

"Well," said Rhuna, as she stared at the balls. "We finally did it; looks like we kept our promise, eh Kenta?"

The Havien smiled sadly. "Yeah, I guess. I can't believe how closely this cut; one week until the deadline. If the Dragon Balls had have taken any longer to recharge before making the third wish, we wouldn't be able to bring Ferris back."

"Let's not wait any longer," said Geani. "Arnika; it's time to summon the Dragon."

Arnika nodded, and stepped up to where the seven sacred stones sat on the grass, twinkling under the sun. "Prepare yourself," she said, glancing around at everybody. "Azulong's pretty big."

And with that note, she flung her arms into the air. As if sensing what was about to happen, a fierce wind picked up, blowing across the plain. The Dragon Balls glowed simultaneously, and Arnika began her chant.

"By the ground below and the Heavens up high,

Rise up now, rise to the sky!

To make my wish I sing this song,

So now come forth, great Azulong!"

The assembled group watched with baited breath as the girl spoke the rhyme. As she finished speaking, there was a short silence. Ten seconds passed.

**BOOM!**

A lightning bolt split the sky, thundering down and striking the Dragon Balls. Although she was expected it, Arnika screamed and fell backwards. Likewise, the Saiyans all gasped, Kenta gave a cry of fear, and Don cowered. Even the Eternal Warriors quailed under the sight.

Only Korros stood unmoved, gazing at his birthright with a small smile on his face.

Above them, the sky turned completely dark, all natural light fading. Screams sounded from the city as the sun was seemingly put out; the citizens had no idea what was happening. Korros smirked. If they were shocked by this, they had another thing coming...

The lightning ended, leaving the Dragon Balls sparkling on the ground, shedding light to the surrounding area like little orbs of fire. Suddenly, a shape burst from the spheres, a colossal shape made of pure light. As they all watched, the light expanded, growing to preposterous sizes, before fading to reveal the Dragon in its place.

It was magnificent. Azulong's bright green scales positively shone, casting a ring of light for a hundred metres, his red eyes blazing like small coals.

"I-Its incredible..." breathed Mataro, unable to believe his eyes. The Dragon turned its head to face Arnika, who rose back to her feet. Unlike last time, Arnika was completely confident, and looked Azulong in the eye.

"**You have summoned all seven Dragon Balls," **boomed Azulong. The Dragon's gravelly voice rung in Arasha's ears, and she took a step back. She wasn't the only one. The only two who faced the Dragon unflinchingly were Arnika and Korros; the Namekian seemed to be enjoying everyone else's discomfort. **"What is your wish?"**

"Azulong!" called the Havien girl. "I wish for you to bring Ferris, the Havien swordsman, who died defending the Haven from the alien Cuo, back to life, restoring his body to complete health."

Silence. Then the Dragon spoke.

"**This wish is acceptable," **said Azulong, and everybody let out a deep breath in unison. As they did so, the Dragon's eyes burned like a pair of brilliant flares. **"Your wish has been granted."**

"Yes..." whispered Arnika, and she shared an excited glance with Kenta. The two of them had missed Ferris greatly.

"**And now, three requests have been made of me," **added Azulong, and everybody turned their attention back to the scaly beast. **"This means farewell. My powers cannot be used again for a full year. Goodbye."**

"See ya," murmured Mataro in relief. The Dragon was beginning to rattle his nerves. With a low grumble, Azulong exploded into light, and the seven Dragon Balls hovered high into the air, spinning in a ring around and around. Suddenly, they split, flying off in several different directions. Yellow light trailed after every one. The Dragon Balls had scattered.

"So, it's done then." Geani bowed his head. "At last."

"But where's Ferris?" asked Rhuna. Geani looked at her.

"Just wait," he said hesitantly, flashing back to his own rebirth, half a year before. It had taken up to a minute for people to return. "Any second now..."

As if on cue, a large blue sphere burst into being, ten metres above their heads. The blue light faded away, and inside was man. He wore a blue gi, with a black strip of cloth acting as a belt. Under the gi was a red shirt. Strapped to the man's back was a leather sheath, though it was empty. The sword that belonged in the sheath, Shinsou, was safely back at Don's house, kept in a safe hidden in the floor. The broken blade had been reforged by Geani.

The man's eyes were closed, and he descended slowly to the ground. The wind blew at his brown hair, but the man didn't open his eyes until he touched the ground.

Ferris had barely come back to life before he was smothered in a hug by both Arnika and Kenta at once. The siblings wrestled their older friend to the ground, laughing and shouting incomprehensible words.

Eventually, they climbed off, and Ferris rose. Confidently, he looked around with his handsome blue eyes, taking in his surroundings.

"Ah," he murmured. "Haven."

Ferris turned to Arnika and Kenta, who both had wide grins on their faces. After a few seconds, the returned the smile, and embraced them.

"I should have known that you'd wish me back to life," he laughed. "And I'm very glad you did."

The man looked past them, at a small man, who was beaming at the trio, glad to see them together again.

"How's it going, Don?" called Ferris, and the scientist called back.

"Very well, my old friend. Good to see you back on your feet at last."

The swordsman nodded, and then looked at his student, Kenta, and clapped a hand on his shoulder.

"How you've grown," said Ferris, full of pride. "I see you've carried on without me. Your power is outstanding."

Kenta grinned, blushing. "Yeah, well...I had some help."

The boy looked over at the Eternal Warriors, and Ferris followed his gaze, frowning.

"Can't say I've met you three before. I'm Ferris. Thanks for looking after Kenta while I was away."

Geani shook his head, smiling as well. "He looked after himself just fine. Kenta's not a boy anymore."

Ferris laughed. "He'll always be a boy in my eyes. You'll have to tell me more about what's happened later on. I heard something about a demon, or something?"

Arnika was confused. "Huh? How could you know about that? You were in Other World, weren't you?"

Ferris smiled mysteriously. "Oh yes. However, I received training from a being who told me of the events happening back here. I was pretty worried at one point, but it seems you all pulled through."

"Who was it?" asked Kenta, interested.

"He was...an odd fellow. He liked jokes, but he had a bit of a strange sense of humour. He had an entire planet to himself, though it was only about a hundred metres in diameter. It was weird; he had a sports car, but he didn't have anywhere to drive it too."

"So, what was his name," asked Mataro. Ferris looked at the new face, and smiled.

"Most people knew him...as _King Kai!"_

All three Eternal Warriors gasped, as well as Zeang and Korros.

"You can't be serious!" stammered Geani. "You met a Kai?"

"I didn't just meet him; I trained under him. He taught me things I'd never have thought were possible, and we became good friends."

"That amazing..." sighed Arasha, astounded. "To train under a Kai is one of the greatest privileges one can earn. Consider yourself blessed."

Ferris nodded. "I do."

"So," called a voice. "Let's see your new strength."

Ferris was confused, but then smiled. He had heard that voice before; the confident air, the arrogant tone. Ferris looked past Kenta and Arnika to see Blitzo, standing alongside Rhuna and Makurin. Blitzo was smirking; his challenge hung in the air.

"Ah, my friends," said Ferris, stepping forwards to face them. "I want to thank you; I know of your deeds to save the planet. First from that revolting fish-faced freak, and then from the demon. Haven owes you a great debt.

Makurin waved his hand. "It was nothing."

Rhuna caught Ferris' eye and grinned sheepishly; the last time they had spoken, Rhuna had threatened to kill the Havien.

"Well, Blitzo...you wish to see my power?" asked Ferris, turning back to the strongest Saiyan. "Very well. Stand back, you two," he said to Kenta and Arnika. The siblings gave him a wide berth, leaving him a large area to power up in.

And power up he did. Hunched over slightly, Ferris began to charge his energy. It was incredible, and the ground beneath his feet began to crack. The Eternal Warriors looked impressed, and even Korros looked mildly surprised. Kenta watched, mouth wide, as Ferris' Power Level passed his own. Despite all his work with Geani, Kenta had still been surpassed by his old mentor.

"_Wow," _he thought. _"You were always better...I guess training with a Kai has its benefits..."_

Ferris' strained yells grew louder and higher in pitch. Zeang pulled a small device from his pocket; the last remaining Scouter. Miraculously, it had survived through everything, and Zeang had brought it specially for this moment, to test Ferris' power. In awe, Zeang fitted the Scouter over his left ear. The energy tracker latched onto Ferris' rising Power Level immediately, the number on the tiny green screen growing larger and larger.

"47,000...49,000...52,000..." muttered Zeang, his eyes widening. Finally, Ferris gave one last scream, and his energy levels maxed out completely. Wind blew around them all, propelled by the massive white aura that flamed around Ferris' body. Zeang's Scouter beeped.

"Astonishing!" whimpered Zeang, unable to believe his eyes. "55,000!"

"You're _kidding _me!" murmured Rhuna. "He's almost as strong as us!"

Blitzo simply bowed his head, eyes closed. A smug smile was on his face. "Not bad, Ferris. You've gotten a lot stronger than the day we met."

Ferris' mouth was drawn into a snarl as he held his power level at its absolute highest, but at Blitzo's comment he gave a smirk of his own. "Oh, I'm far from done..."

"Huh?" whispered Kenta. "What's he doing?"

"You mean...he's not at his maximum?" muttered Geani in shock. This stranger – trained by a Kai – was full of surprises.

Ferris began to focus once more, and to everybody's amazement, his white aura doubled in size. Blitzo's eyes shot open.

"Kaio..." bellowed Ferris, and his aura changed from white to a deep red. Blitzo's eyes bulged, and he took a step backwards, as Ferris' power skyrocketed.

"KAIO-KEN!"

Arnika let out a shriek and tumbled over again as Ferris' energy doubled. It was unbelievable. Even Korros shouted in disbelief, and backed away. Zeang's mouth hung open, jaw quivering, as the numerical display on his Scouter blinked a few times, before the entire Scouter exploded. Small shards of metal and glass rained down onto the grass under the alien's feet, but he barely noticed.

After a few moments, Ferris' loud grunts died down, and his Power Level lowered again, all the way back down to normal, and the wind stopped blowing. Ferris was left panting heavily, a triumphant grin on his face.

Blitzo was gobsmacked, his mouth open wide enough to fit a tennis ball in.

"What...how did you do that?"

Ferris straightened up, the smug grin back on his face. "It's a technique called the Kaio-Ken. King Kai taught it to me."

"That was amazing..." breathed Arasha. "He summoned all that power...incredible!"

"Tell us," said Korros, stepping forward. "This Kaio-Ken..."

Ferris looked at him. "A Namekian, I see. Pleased to meet you, my friend. I watched your struggle from King Kai's Planet. You fought the demon well."

Korros nodded respectfully. "Thank-you."

"The Kaio-Ken doubles the user's power for a single instant. Unfortunately, the massive increase in ki could be too much for the user's body, and could potentially destroy me if I multiply my power by any more than twice. A Saiyan might be able to go higher..." Ferris added thoughtfully, glancing at the shocked trio, who were still gaping at him. "But I wouldn't be able to teach the technique to you. Only King Kai would be able to pass on the knowledge correctly."

Ferris stopped speaking, and felt at the empty scabbard on his back. "Tell me...my sword. Where is it?"

Kenta piped up. "It's back at the house."

"If no one minds, I want to see it again."

Kenta nodded. "Alright then. Let's go."

Arnika and Kenta walked back to the city, Ferris between them. The three were engrossed in conversation. The three Saiyan's looked at each other, and then quickly hurried after them, catching up quickly.

"And so it's done," said Geani. "Ferris has returned, at last."

The Eternal Warriors took off into the air, flying after the retreating group. Within seconds, they'd all disappeared amongst the buildings of the city.

Back on the plain, Zeang smiled contently, closing his eyes.

"It's finally over," he said, and took a step forward to leave as well. As his foot hit the ground, he frowned, and looked down. Under his boot was a small green piece of glass. The eyepiece of the broken Scouter. Silently, Zeang reached down and picked it up. The alien stared mournfully at the eyepiece for several seconds, and sighed.

"Will you rebuild it?" spoke a soft voice, coming from a point just beside Zeang. The alien turned to see Don looking at him, smiling kindly. Korros stepped up to Zeang's other side, and the three of them gazed at the small green glass. Zeang shook his head.

"No," he said. "I won't rebuild it. Now that the Scouter's broken, our last link to Frieza has been severed at last. Now nothing remains to tie us to that monster. We're free."

Don nodded thoughtfully. "Indeed."

Zeang crushed the eyepiece in his fist, compressing the glass into powder. Tiny shards sprinkled out the side of his clenched fingers.

At last, they were free.

**000**

_Click!_

The small sound echoed down the hall as Arnika closed the door to her laboratory. It was completely dark, except for a small light at the end of the hall.

It was a week after Ferris had been restored, an exact year since the Saiyan's arrival on Haven. Arnika frowned as she reached her bedroom; something wasn't quite normal. With a start, she realised what it was. The girl could sense an energy signature a few kilometres away; it was familiar.

"_Blitzo?" _thought Arnika, surprised. "_What's he doing out there?"_

Quickly, she went into her room and slipped on some socks and shoes, then left the house, flying under the dark sky. The moon hung above, a bright light against the black background. Stars were abundant.

Five minutes later, Arnika left the cluster of buildings that made up the city, arriving on the large grassy field that led to the cliff. In the distance, Arnika could see a small silhouette on the cliff's edge. Blitzo.

She knew that he could sense her coming, but he still didn't move as she drew nearer. The Saiyan was sitting on the short grass near the great drop into the sea, looking out over the crashing water. He had his knees pulled up to his chest, his arms folded over them. His eyes were gloomy and his expression downcast.

"Hey," he mumbled, as Arnika dropped to the ground next to him, sitting cross-legged.

"Hi," she answered quietly. "What are you doing out here. It's nearly two in the morning, and it's freezing!"

Blitzo shrugged, but didn't turn his gaze from the waves washing in to crash against the rocks at the bottom of the cliff. "Couldn't sleep, so I came out here to think..."

Arnika frowned. "What about?"

Blitzo sighed, and stood up, shuffling along until he was standing a mere metre from the edge. For a full minute he was silent, transfixed by the water, but eventually he answered.

"Did I ever tell you...about my friend...Gohron?"

Arnika furrowed her brow, recalling that day, only a day under a year ago, when Zeang had filled her, Kenta, and Don in about Blitzo's past, and his brotherly relationship with the pure-hearted Saiyan, Gohron, who had been murdered by Frieza.

"Zeang told me about him," she answered. "He said that Gohron was the reason that you're so different from Rhuna and Makurin."

Blitzo smiled gloomily; his heart wasn't in it. "I suppose he's right about that..."

The Saiyan trailed off.

"What are you trying to say?" asked Arnika gently.

Blitzo shrugged one of his shoulders, and shook his head. "I don't know...I guess it's just...I can't believe how close I was to being able to bring back the Saiyans. Did you realise? Three wishes? If Denkuma hadn't have showed up, we could have used the first wish to bring back Ferris...the second to recreate Planet Vegeta...and then the third to bring every Saiyan back. I'm just finding it hard to accept that my entire race is gone..."

Blitzo sighed again, and Arnika felt a wave of sorrow for her friend. Standing up from where she was sitting on the ground, she followed Blitzo to the edge of the cliff and took hold of one of his arms, leaning close to him and resting her head on his shoulder. Blitzo stiffened at the unexpected contact with the girl, but then relaxed again.

"They're not all gone..." Arnika said kindly. "You're still here, and so are Makurin and Rhuna. Besides...you might not have revived the Saiyans, but you saved every single Havien, alive or dead. We'd all be dead if it weren't for you. And that's good enough for me."

Blitzo finally turned his head, and looked Arnika in the eye, who smiled back.

"Thanks, Blitzo," she said. "For everything..."

And before Blitzo could react in any way, the girl leaned forward and kissed him. Stunned, the Saiyan's eyes widened, and his cheeks turned bright red, frozen in surprise.

Arnika broke away, giggled at Blitzo's overwhelmed expression, and then turned and skipped away back towards the city.

"Goodnight," she called back over her shoulder, and was gone.

Blitzo was blushing madly, his eyes still wide. Dazed, he stared after the Havien girl as she left.

"Goodnight..." he murmured. It was all the Saiyan could say; he was still shaken by the kiss.

Several minutes passed, and Blitzo soon gained the ability to move again, the paralysis in his mind fading, and a tiny smile spread across his face. Already flashing back to that amazing moment, the Saiyan turned to look back at the ocean, and then stared up at the stars hanging above. Somewhere out there, trillions of beings lived, some in harmony, others in war. And yet, right there on Haven, everything seemed perfect.

"_The night sky really is beautiful," _he thought, and as he stared up at the thousands of stars pasted across the black backdrop, there was a bright flash, and a spark zoomed across the sky. A shooting star. Blitzo smiled, and spoke to himself.

"Make a wish!"

**000**

And so, Dragon Ball X has come to an end...for now, anyway. This chapter was actually a lot longer than I thought it would be, but it turned out just as I imagined it, so I'm happy. Funny thing; it's actually the longest chapter I've ever written.

Ah, what a heartwarming last scene, if I do say so myself. I had fun writing it; I've been planning that last bit since chapter 6. And Ferris is back; he's been promoted from the dead guy to one of the main characters, so you'll be seeing him a lot more often now.

In case you saw that I'd marked this story as "complete", it is indeed finished. But the adventures of the Saiyans and the Haviens aren't over yet. I've decided to split the story's arcs into several different fics; as of now, this one has been renamed to "Dragon Ball X – Volume I – Eternal Protectors". Keep your eyes out the next volume. It's like waiting for a book to come out ;) Anyway, I probably won't begin Volume II for about two months, unfortunately. I've got my month-long camp, and then I'll take a short break and focus on Aura Adventure for a bit.

Special thanks to Littlmiget123 for giving me great advice and helping me out greatly; he's like my editor. Thanks, Alex! Oh, by the way, I haven't checked this for mistakes, so could you check it for me? Thanks again.

See you all next time!


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